# least

> English word · Adjective · IPA /liːst/ · frequency rank #348

## Definitions
1. Chiefly preceded by the: superlative form of little: most little.
2. Chiefly preceded by the: superlative form of little: most little.
3. Chiefly preceded by the: superlative form of little: most little.
4. Chiefly preceded by the: superlative form of little: most little.

## Etymology
The adjective, determiner, and noun are derived from Middle English leste, lest, last (“(adjective) smallest, least; (noun) smallest thing, etc.; person or thing least in importance; etc.”), from Old English lǣst, a contraction of læsast, læsest (“least”) (also lærest in only one source), from Proto-Germanic *laisistaz (“smallest, least”), from *laisiz (“less”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *leh₂is- or *leh₃is-; whence modern English less) + *-istaz (“suffix forming superlative forms of some adjectives”).
The adverb and pronoun are derived from the adjective or determiner.
cognates
* Old Frisian leist
* Old Saxon lēs

## Easily confused with
- **let** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-let)
- **les** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-les)
- **LST** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lst)
- **left** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-left)
- **less** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-less)
- **lost** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lost)
- **list** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-list)
- **legs** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-legs)
- **lets** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lets)
- **lens** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lens)
- **lent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lent)
- **lust** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lust)
- **lest** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lest)
- **lees** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lees)
- **LSAT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lsat)
- **leave** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-leave)
- **legit** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-legit)
- **Lhasa** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-lhasa)
- **Levant** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/least-vs-levant)
- **las** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/las-vs-least)

## Common misspellings (7)
`elast`, `laest`, `leasst`, `leastt`, `leats`, `lesat`, `lleast`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/least