-less
See also: less
English edit
Alternative forms edit
- -lesse (obsolete)
Etymology edit
From Middle English -les, -leas, from Old English -lēas (“-less”), from lēas (“devoid of, loose from, false”), from Proto-West Germanic *laus, from Proto-Germanic *lausaz (“loose”). (Not related to less, which derives from *laisiz, *laisizô.)
Cognate with Scots -less, West Frisian -leas, Saterland Frisian -loos, Dutch -loos (“-less”), Low German -los, German -los, Danish -løs, Swedish -lös, Icelandic -laus. More at lease (“false”).
Pronunciation edit
- IPA(key): /ləs/, /lɪs/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Suffix edit
-less
- Lacking (something); without (something). Added usually to a noun to form an adjective signifying a lack of that noun.
- 2013 September-October, Henry Petroski, “The Evolution of Eyeglasses”, in American Scientist:
- The ability of a segment of a glass sphere to magnify whatever is placed before it was known around the year 1000, when the spherical segment was called a reading stone, essentially what today we might term a frameless magnifying glass or plain glass paperweight.
Usage notes edit
- Adjectives formed using -less often form nouns by the addition of -ness (e.g. helplessness), but generally do not form nouns by the addition of other noun-forming endings.
- A notable exception to the usual usage of this suffix is that doubtless is usually an adverb, rather than an adjective.
Synonyms edit
Antonyms edit
- (antonym(s) of “lacking”): -ed, -y, -some (having in considerable amount), -ful (having in abundance)
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
lacking
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Anagrams edit
Scots edit
Etymology edit
From Middle English -les, from Old English -lēas (“-less”).
Suffix edit
-less
Categories:
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms inherited from Old English
- English terms derived from Old English
- English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- English lemmas
- English suffixes
- English terms with quotations
- English productive suffixes
- Scots terms inherited from Middle English
- Scots terms derived from Middle English
- Scots terms inherited from Old English
- Scots terms derived from Old English
- Scots lemmas
- Scots suffixes