-less

Language

See also: less

English

Alternative forms

-lesse (obsolete)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *lewh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der.

Proto-Germanic *leusaną

Proto-Germanic *lausaz

Proto-Germanic *-lausaz

Proto-West Germanic *-laus

Old English -lēas

Middle English -les

English -less

Category:English terms inherited from Proto-West Germanic#LESS Category:English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European#LESS Category:English terms derived from Middle English#LESS Category:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic#LESS Category:English terms inherited from Middle English#LESS Category:English terms derived from Old English#LESS Category:English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic#LESS Category:English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *lewh₁-#LESS Category:English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic#LESS Category:English terms inherited from Old English#LESS Category:Pages with etymology trees#LESS Category:English entries with etymology trees#LESS Category:Pages using etymon with no ID#LESS

From Middle English Category:English terms inherited from Middle English#LESS Category:English terms derived from Middle English#LESS -les, -leas, from Old English Category:English terms inherited from Old English#LESS Category:English terms derived from Old English#LESS -lēas (“-less”) (compare lēas (“devoid of, loose from, false”)), from Proto-West Germanic Category:English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic#LESS *-laus, from Proto-Germanic Category:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic#LESS *-lausaz, from *lausaz (“loose”). (Not related to less, which derives from *laisiz, *laisizô.) Cognate with Scots -less, West Frisian -leas, Saterland Frisian -loos, Dutch -loos, Low German -los, German -los, Danish -løs, Swedish -lös, Icelandic -laus. More at lease (“false”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ləs/, /lɪs/Category:English 1-syllable words#LESS Category:English 1-syllable words#LESS Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation#LESS
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#LESS

Suffix

-less (adjective-forming suffix, not comparable)Category:English lemmas#LESS Category:English suffixes#LESS Category:English adjective-forming suffixes#LESS Category:English uncomparable adjectives#LESS Category:English entries with incorrect language header#LESS Category:Pages with entries#LESS Category:Pages with 2 entries#LESS

Lacking (something); without (something). Added usually to a noun to form an adjective signifying a lack of that noun.
aweless, skill-less, artless, doubtless, countless, soulless, will-less, tireless.
- 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.
  Category:English terms with quotations#LESS

Usage notes

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

(lacking): an-, ex-, -free

Antonyms

(antonym(s) of “lacking”): -ed, -y, -some (having in considerable amount), -ful (having in abundance)

Derived terms

Category:Pages using catfix#LESS

English terms suffixed with -less

acquaintanceless

anthocyaninless

Translations

lacking

Category:Entries with translation boxes#LESS

Abkhaz: -ыда (-əda)Category:Abkhaz terms with non-redundant manual transliterations#LESS Category:Terms with Abkhaz translations#LESS
Acehnese: hanaCategory:Terms with Acehnese translations#LESS
Afar: sinniCategory:Terms with Afar translations#LESS
Afrikaans: ont-Category:Terms with Afrikaans translations#LESS
Akan: nimCategory:Terms with Akan translations#LESS, a enni muCategory:Terms with Akan translations#LESS
Albanian: pa (sq)Category:Terms with Albanian translations#LESS
Arabic: بِلَا (bilā)Category:Terms with Arabic translations#LESS, غَيْر ... (ar) (ḡayr ...)Category:Terms with Arabic translations#LESS
Armenian: ան- (an-)Category:Terms with Armenian translations#LESS
Azerbaijani: -sizCategory:Terms with Azerbaijani translations#LESS
Basque: -gabeCategory:Terms with Basque translations#LESS
Belarusian: без- (be) (bjez-)Category:Terms with Belarusian translations#LESS
Bengali: -হীন (bn) (-hin)Category:Terms with Bengali translations#LESS
Bulgarian: без (bg) (bez)Category:Terms with Bulgarian translations#LESS
Catalan: sense (ca)Category:Terms with Catalan translations#LESS
Cebuano: walayCategory:Terms with Cebuano translations#LESS
Chinese:
Mandarin: 無- / 无- (zh) (wú-)Category:Terms with Mandarin translations#LESS
Chuvash: -сӗр (-sĕr)Category:Terms with Chuvash translations#LESS
Czech: bez- (cs)Category:Terms with Czech translations#LESS
Danish: -løs (da)Category:Terms with Danish translations#LESS
Dutch: -loos (nl)Category:Terms with Dutch translations#LESS, zonder (nl)Category:Terms with Dutch translations#LESS
Esperanto: sen- (eo)Category:Terms with Esperanto translations#LESS
Estonian: -taCategory:Terms with Estonian translations#LESS, -tuCategory:Terms with Estonian translations#LESS
Faroese: -leysurCategory:Terms with Faroese translations#LESS
Finnish: -ton (fi)Category:Terms with Finnish translations#LESS, -tön (fi)Category:Terms with Finnish translations#LESS
French: sans ... (fr)Category:Terms with French translations#LESS
Frisian:
West Frisian: -leasCategory:Terms with West Frisian translations#LESS
Galician: sen (gl)Category:Terms with Galician translations#LESS
Georgian: უ- (u-)Category:Terms with Georgian translations#LESS, უ- -ო (u- -o)Category:Terms with Georgian translations#LESS, არა- (ara-)Category:Terms with Georgian translations#LESS
German: -los (de)Category:Terms with German translations#LESS
Greek: α- (el) (a-)Category:Terms with Greek translations#LESS, αν- (el) (an-)Category:Terms with Greek translations#LESS
Greenlandic: -eqanngitsoqCategory:Terms with Greenlandic translations#LESS
Gujarati: -હીન (-hīn)Category:Terms with Gujarati translations#LESS
Haitian Creole: e-Category:Terms with Haitian Creole translations#LESS
Hausa: mara (ha)Category:Terms with Hausa translations#LESS, marasaCategory:Terms with Hausa translations#LESS
Hebrew: אל (he) ('ál-)Category:Terms with Hebrew translations#LESS
Hindi: -हीन (-hīn)Category:Terms with Hindi translations#LESS
Hungarian: -talan (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS/-telen (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS, -atlan (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS/-etlen (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS, -tlan (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS/-tlen (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS, -hatatlan (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS/-hetetlen (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS, mentes (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS, nélküli (hu)Category:Terms with Hungarian translations#LESS
Iban: nadaiCategory:Terms with Iban translations#LESS
Icelandic: -lausCategory:Terms with Icelandic translations#LESS, -vanaCategory:Terms with Icelandic translations#LESS
Ido: sen-Category:Terms with Ido translations#LESS
Igbo: enweghịCategory:Terms with Igbo translations#LESS
Indonesian: nir-Category:Terms with Indonesian translations#LESS
Irish: gan (ga)Category:Terms with Irish translations#LESS
Italian: senza (it)Category:Terms with Italian translations#LESS, in- (it)Category:Terms with Italian translations#LESS, s- (it)Category:Terms with Italian translations#LESS, dis- (it)Category:Terms with Italian translations#LESS
Japanese: -無し (ja) (-なし, -nashi)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#LESS, 無- (ja) (む-, mu-)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#LESS, -ない (ja) (-nai)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#LESS, 低- (てい-, tei-)Category:Terms with Japanese translations#LESS
Jingpho: n rawng aiCategory:Terms with Jingpho translations#LESS
Kannada: -ವಿಲ್ಲದ (-villada)Category:Terms with Kannada translations#LESS
Kapampangan: alangCategory:Terms with Kapampangan translations#LESS
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: bê- (ku)Category:Terms with Northern Kurdish translations#LESS
Kyrgyz: -сыз (-sız)Category:Terms with Kyrgyz translations#LESS
Lao: ບໍ່ມີ (bǭ mī)Category:Terms with Lao translations#LESS
Latin: sine (la)Category:Terms with Latin translations#LESS, in-Category:Terms with Latin translations#LESS, ne-Category:Terms with Latin translations#LESS, se-Category:Terms with Latin translations#LESS
Latvian: bezCategory:Terms with Latvian translations#LESS
Lithuanian: be-Category:Terms with Lithuanian translations#LESS
Luo: ongeCategory:Terms with Luo translations#LESS
Macedonian: без- (bez-)Category:Terms with Macedonian translations#LESS
Malay: nir- (ms)Category:Terms with Malay translations#LESS, nis-Category:Terms with Malay translations#LESS (preceding vowels and letters k, t and c)
Māori: kore (mi)Category:Terms with Māori translations#LESS (compounded after nouns)
Mari:
Eastern Mari: -дыме (-dyme)Category:Terms with Eastern Mari translations#LESS
Mongolian: -гүй (-güj)Category:Terms with Mongolian translations#LESS
Nepali: -न- (-na-)Category:Terms with Nepali translations#LESS
N'Ko: ߕߴߊ߬ ߟߊ߫Category:Terms with N'Ko translations#LESS
Norwegian: -løs (no)Category:Terms with Norwegian translations#LESS
Oromo: kan hin qabneCategory:Terms with Oromo translations#LESS
Ossetian: ӕнӕ- (ænæ-)Category:Ossetian terms with redundant transliterations#LESS Category:Terms with Ossetian translations#LESS
Papiamentu: sinCategory:Terms with Papiamentu translations#LESS
Persian: (prefix) بیـ (bi-)Category:Terms with Persian translations#LESS
Polish: bez- (pl)Category:Terms with Polish translations#LESS
Portuguese: sem (pt)Category:Terms with Portuguese translations#LESS, des- (pt)Category:Terms with Portuguese translations#LESS
Punjabi: -ਹੀਨ (-hīn)Category:Terms with Punjabi translations#LESS
Romani: bi-Category:Terms with Romani translations#LESS
Romanian: fără (ro)Category:Terms with Romanian translations#LESS
Russian: без(ъ)- (ru) (bez(ʺ)-)Category:Terms with Russian translations#LESS / бес(ъ)- (ru) (bes(ʺ)-)Category:Terms with Russian translations#LESS
Scottish Gaelic: gunCategory:Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations#LESS
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: без-Category:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations#LESS

Latin: bez-Category:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations#LESS
Seychellois Creole: sanCategory:Terms with Seychellois Creole translations#LESS
Slovak: bez-Category:Terms with Slovak translations#LESS
Slovene: brez (sl)Category:Terms with Slovene translations#LESS
Spanish: sin (es)Category:Terms with Spanish translations#LESS, des- (es)Category:Terms with Spanish translations#LESS
Swahili: bila (sw)Category:Terms with Swahili translations#LESS
Swedish: -lös (sv)Category:Terms with Swedish translations#LESS
Tagalog: pugot angCategory:Terms with Tagalog translations#LESS, walangCategory:Terms with Tagalog translations#LESS
Telugu: -లేని (-lēni)Category:Terms with Telugu translations#LESS
Tumbuka: wamburaCategory:Terms with Tumbuka translations#LESS
Turkish: -siz (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#LESS, -sız (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#LESS, -suz (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#LESS, -süz (tr)Category:Terms with Turkish translations#LESS
Tuvan: чок (çok)Category:Tuvan terms with non-redundant manual transliterations#LESS Category:Terms with Tuvan translations#LESS
Udmurt: -тэм (-tem)Category:Terms with Udmurt translations#LESS, ӧвӧл (övöl)Category:Udmurt terms with redundant transliterations#LESS Category:Terms with Udmurt translations#LESS
Ukrainian: без- (uk) (bez-)Category:Terms with Ukrainian translations#LESS
Venda: zwisinaCategory:Terms with Venda translations#LESS, asinaCategory:Terms with Venda translations#LESS
Vietnamese: cây đinh khôngCategory:Terms with Vietnamese translations#LESS
Welsh: di- (cy)Category:Terms with Welsh translations#LESS, diCategory:Terms with Welsh translations#LESS
Yiddish: ־לאָז (-loz)Category:Terms with Yiddish translations#LESS
Yoruba: àìníCategory:Terms with Yoruba translations#LESS

Anagrams

ELSS, SELs, SLEs

Category:English productive suffixes#LESS

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English Category:Scots terms inherited from Middle English#LESS Category:Scots terms derived from Middle English#LESS -les, from Old English Category:Scots terms inherited from Old English#LESS Category:Scots terms derived from Old English#LESS -lēas (“-less”).

Suffix

-lessCategory:Scots lemmas#LESS Category:Scots suffixes#LESS Category:Scots entries with incorrect language header#LESS Category:Pages with entries#LESS Category:Pages with 2 entries#LESS

lacking; without. Added usually to a noun to form an adjective signifying a lack of that noun.

Category:Abkhaz terms with non-redundant manual transliterations Category:English 1-syllable words Category:English adjective-forming suffixes Category:English entries with etymology trees Category:English lemmas Category:English productive suffixes Category:English suffixes Category:English terms derived from Middle English Category:English terms derived from Old English Category:English terms derived from Proto-Germanic Category:English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European Category:English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic Category:English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *lewh₁- Category:English terms inherited from Middle English Category:English terms inherited from Old English Category:English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic Category:English terms inherited from Proto-West Germanic Category:English terms with IPA pronunciation Category:English terms with audio pronunciation Category:English terms with quotations Category:English uncomparable adjectives Category:Entries with translation boxes Category:Ossetian terms with redundant transliterations Category:Pages using catfix Category:Pages using etymon with no ID Category:Pages with 2 entries Category:Pages with entries Category:Pages with etymology trees Category:Scots lemmas Category:Scots suffixes Category:Scots terms derived from Middle English Category:Scots terms derived from Old English Category:Scots terms inherited from Middle English Category:Scots terms inherited from Old English Category:Terms with Abkhaz translations Category:Terms with Acehnese translations Category:Terms with Afar translations Category:Terms with Afrikaans translations Category:Terms with Akan translations Category:Terms with Albanian translations Category:Terms with Arabic translations Category:Terms with Armenian translations Category:Terms with Azerbaijani translations Category:Terms with Basque translations Category:Terms with Belarusian translations Category:Terms with Bengali translations Category:Terms with Bulgarian translations Category:Terms with Catalan translations Category:Terms with Cebuano translations Category:Terms with Chuvash translations Category:Terms with Czech translations Category:Terms with Danish translations Category:Terms with Dutch translations Category:Terms with Eastern Mari translations Category:Terms with Esperanto translations Category:Terms with Estonian translations Category:Terms with Faroese translations Category:Terms with Finnish translations Category:Terms with French translations Category:Terms with Galician translations Category:Terms with Georgian translations Category:Terms with German translations Category:Terms with Greek translations Category:Terms with Greenlandic translations Category:Terms with Gujarati translations Category:Terms with Haitian Creole translations Category:Terms with Hausa translations Category:Terms with Hebrew translations Category:Terms with Hindi translations Category:Terms with Hungarian translations Category:Terms with Iban translations Category:Terms with Icelandic translations Category:Terms with Ido translations Category:Terms with Igbo translations Category:Terms with Indonesian translations Category:Terms with Irish translations Category:Terms with Italian translations Category:Terms with Japanese translations Category:Terms with Jingpho translations Category:Terms with Kannada translations Category:Terms with Kapampangan translations Category:Terms with Kyrgyz translations Category:Terms with Lao translations Category:Terms with Latin translations Category:Terms with Latvian translations Category:Terms with Lithuanian translations Category:Terms with Luo translations Category:Terms with Macedonian translations Category:Terms with Malay translations Category:Terms with Mandarin translations Category:Terms with Mongolian translations Category:Terms with Māori translations Category:Terms with N'Ko translations Category:Terms with Nepali translations Category:Terms with Northern Kurdish translations Category:Terms with Norwegian translations Category:Terms with Oromo translations Category:Terms with Ossetian translations Category:Terms with Papiamentu translations Category:Terms with Persian translations Category:Terms with Polish translations Category:Terms with Portuguese translations Category:Terms with Punjabi translations Category:Terms with Romani translations Category:Terms with Romanian translations Category:Terms with Russian translations Category:Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations Category:Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations Category:Terms with Seychellois Creole translations Category:Terms with Slovak translations Category:Terms with Slovene translations Category:Terms with Spanish translations Category:Terms with Swahili translations Category:Terms with Swedish translations Category:Terms with Tagalog translations Category:Terms with Telugu translations Category:Terms with Tumbuka translations Category:Terms with Turkish translations Category:Terms with Tuvan translations Category:Terms with Udmurt translations Category:Terms with Ukrainian translations Category:Terms with Venda translations Category:Terms with Vietnamese translations Category:Terms with Welsh translations Category:Terms with West Frisian translations Category:Terms with Yiddish translations Category:Terms with Yoruba translations Category:Tuvan terms with non-redundant manual transliterations Category:Udmurt terms with redundant transliterations