You use little to indicate that there is only a very small amount of something. You can use 'so', 'too', and'very' in front of little.
I had little money and little free time.
I find that I need very little sleep these days.
There is little doubt that a diet high in fibre is more satisfying.
So far little progress has been made towards ending the fighting.
The pudding is quick and easy and needs little attention once in the oven.
Little is also a quantifier.
Little of the existing housing is of good enough quality.
Little of the money gets through to the children who need it.
Little is also a pronoun.
He ate little, and drank less.
In general, employers do little to help the single working mother.
Little is known about his childhood.
2. adverb [ADVERB with verb]
Little means not very often or to only a small extent.
On their way back to Marseille they spoke very little.
The animals were covered in dust, but otherwise little affected.
Synonyms: hardly, barely, not quite, not much More Synonyms of little
3. determiner
A little of something is a small amount of it, but not very much. You can also say a very little.
Mrs Caan needs a little help getting her groceries home.
A little food would do us all some good.
...a little light reading.
I shall be only a very little time.
Little is also a pronoun.
They get paid for it. Not much. Just a little.
Little is also a quantifier.
Pour a little of the sauce over the chicken. [+ of]
I'm sure she won't mind sparing us a little of her time. [+ of]
4. adverb [ADVERB after verb]
If you do something a little, you do it for a short time.
He walked a little by himself in the garden.
Synonyms: to a small extent, slightly, to some extent, to a certain extent More Synonyms of little
5. adverb [ADVERB after verb, ADVERB adjective/adverb]
A little or a little bit means to a small extent or degree.
He complained a little of a nagging pain between his shoulder blades.
He was a little bit afraid of his father's reaction.
If you have to drive when you are tired, go a little more slowly than you would normally.
He wanted to have someone to whom he could talk a little about himself.
6.
See little by little
More Synonyms of little
English Easy Learning GrammarDeterminersDeterminers are words that make the reference of nouns more specific. If I say ‘thiscar’ it is clear that I mean a particular car which is near me. If ... Read more
English Easy Learning GrammarNoun phrases with several determinersMost noun phrases contain only one determiner or none at all, but if there are more,they follow a definite order. Determiners can be divided into four ... Read more
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little adjective uses
(lɪtəl)
Word forms: comparative littler, superlative littlestThe comparative littler and the superlative littlest are sometimes used in spoken English for meanings [sense 1], , [sense 3], and , [sense 4], but otherwise the comparative and superlative forms of the adjective little are not used.
1. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
Little things are small in size. Little is slightly more informal than small.
We sat around a little table, eating and drinking tea.
...the little group of art students.
Synonyms: small, minute, short, tiny More Synonyms of little
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
You use little to indicate that someone or something is small, in a pleasant and attractive way.
She's got the nicest little house not far from the library.
...a little old lady.
James usually drives a little hatchback.
3. adjective
A little child is young.
I have a little boy of 8.
When I was little I was very hyper-active.
Synonyms: young, small, junior, infant More Synonyms of little
4. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
Your little sister or brother is younger than you are.
Whenever Daniel's little sister was asked to do something she always had a naughtyreply.
5. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
A little distance, period of time, or event is short in length.
Just go down the road a little way, turn left, and cross the bridge.
Why don't we just wait a little while and see what happens.
I've been wanting to have a little talk with you.
6. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
A little sound or gesture is quick.
I had a little laugh to myself.
She stood up quickly, giving a little cry of astonishment.
He turned with a little nod and I watched him walk away.
Synonyms: short, brief, fleeting, short-lived More Synonyms of little
7. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
You use little to indicate that something is not serious or important.
...irritating little habits.
Harry found himself getting angry over little things that had never bothered himbefore.
Synonyms: unimportant, minor, petty, trivial More Synonyms of little
little in British English
(ˈlɪtəl)
determiner
1. (often preceded by a)
a.
a small quantity, extent, or duration of
the little hope there is left
very little milk
b.
(as pronoun)
save a little for me
2.
not much
little damage was done
3. make little of
4. not a little
5. quite a little
6. think little of
adjective
7.
of small or less than average size
8.
young
a little boy
our little ones
9.
endearingly familiar; dear
my husband's little ways
10.
contemptible, mean, or disagreeable
your filthy little mind
11.
(of a region or district) resembling another country or town in miniature
little Venice
12. little game
13. no little
adverb
14. (usually preceded by a)
in a small amount; to a small extent or degree; not a lot
to laugh a little
15. (used preceding a verb)
not at all, or hardly
he little realized his fate
16.
not much or often
we go there very little now
17. little by little
See also less, lesser, least, littler, littlest
Word origin
Old English lӯtel; related to lӯr few, Old High German luzzil
little in American English
(ˈlɪtəl)
adjectiveWord forms: ˈlittler or less or ˈlesser, ˈlittlest or least
1.
small in size; not big, large, or great
2.
small in amount, number, or degree; not much
3.
short in duration or distance; brief; not long
4.
small in importance or power
the rights of the little man
5.
small in force, intensity, etc.; weak
6.
trivial; trifling
7.
lacking in breadth of vision; narrow-minded; illiberal
a little mind
8.
young
said of children or animals
9.
younger
her little brother
adverbWord forms: less or least
10.
in a small degree; to a slight extent; only slightly; not much
11.
not in the least
he little suspects the plot
noun
12.
a.
small amount, degree, etc.
often used with a and having adverbial force
a little crazy
b.
not much
little will be done about it
13.
a short time or distance
SIMILAR WORDS: small
Idioms:
in little
little by little
make little of
not a little
some little
Derived forms
littleness (ˈlittleness)
noun
Word origin
ME littel < OE lytel (akin to Ger dial. lützel) < base of lyt, small (< IE base *leud-, to stoop > Welsh lludded, fatigue), infl. by ON litill, small (akin to Goth leitils) < IE base *lei-, to decline, be lean > less
More idioms containing
little
twist someone around your little finger
a little bird told me
great oaks from little acorns grow
behave like a little tin god
Examples of 'little' in a sentence
little
Yet there is surprisingly little help for people like us.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Things have just been a little harder this quarter.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Yet there is little hard evidence to support these ideas.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
West hopes his partner has a little something.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
At present there is often very little that doctors can do to help them to recover.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This way you are also doing a little stretch.
The Sun (2016)
The game allows you to take as little or as much responsibility as you want.
The Sun (2016)
But there's little from further back.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Asked about his personal life, he gave little away.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The older generation had little love for the extremists.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
We all get by with a little help from our friends.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
To know guys like that are backing you makes you want to push that little bit harder.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Some players have that little extra something.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Very little of the looted art has been recovered or returned to its owners.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We are meant to use them little and often.
The Sun (2012)
The man himself was giving little away.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
The battle also had little impact on the continental land war.
French, David The British way in Warfare - 1688-2000 (1990)
You pay too much for too little.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
It was a good little helping hand.
The Sun (2008)
The secret is to have as little impact as possible.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
We were speaking for quite a little while.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
That was my little bit of luck.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
This little lady can belt out a tune and is the triple threat.
The Sun (2014)
Our neighbours ought to know the way that we go on in our little quiet country towns.
Richard Ingrams The Life and Adventures of William Cobbett (2005)
Very little is known about any of these important questions.
Charles A. D'Ambrosio & Stewart D. Hodges & Richard Brealey & Stewart Myers Principles of Corporate Finance (1991)
Our thoughts will be with the one that comes up a little short.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Add the icing sugar a little at a time and mix until smooth.
The Sun (2014)
There is a small spa but little else to do except relax.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Some of the players are certainly a little older and a little wiser.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
So let's step back a little.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Quotations
Little things affect little mindsBenjamin DisraeliSybil
In other languages
little
British English: little /ˈlɪtl/ ADJECTIVE
A person or thing that is little is small in size.
They live in a little house.
American English: little
Arabic: صَغِيرٌ
Brazilian Portuguese: pequeno
Chinese: 小的
Croatian: malen
Czech: malý
Danish: lille
Dutch: klein
European Spanish: pequeño
Finnish: pieni
French: petit minime
German: klein
Greek: μικρός
Italian: piccolo
Japanese: 小さい
Korean: 작은
Norwegian: liten
Polish: mały
European Portuguese: pequeno
Romanian: mic
Russian: маленький
Latin American Spanish: pequeño
Swedish: liten
Thai: เล็ก
Turkish: küçük
Ukrainian: маленький
Vietnamese: nhỏ
Chinese translation of 'little'
little
(ˈlɪtl)
adj
(= small)[thing, person]小的 (xiǎo de)
⇒ a little house小房子 (xiǎo fángzi)
(= young)[child]小的 (xiǎo de)
(= younger)
little brother/sister弟弟/妹妹 (dìdi/mèimei)
(= short)[distance, time, event]短的 (duǎn de)
⇒ a little while longer过一段时间 (guò yī duàn shíjiān)
⇒ There is very little time left.只剩下很短的时间了。 (Zhǐ shèngxià hěn duǎn de shíjiān le.)
(= trivial) 琐(瑣)碎的 (suǒsuì de)
⇒ Harry would often get angry over little things.哈利总是为琐事动怒。 (Hālì zǒngshì wèi suǒshì dòngnù.)
(quantifier)
to have little time/money没(沒)有多少时(時)间(間)/金钱(錢) (méiyǒu duōshao shíjiān/jīnqián)
adv
少 (shǎo)
⇒ I have seen him very little recently.最近我很少见到他。 (Zuìjìn wǒ hěn shǎo jiàndào tā.)
⇒ We tried to interfere as little as possible.我们尽可能不干预。 (Wǒmen jǐn kěnéng bù gānyù.)
a little (= small amount) 一点(點) (yīdiǎn) (noun) 一点(點) (yīdiǎn) [sleep, eat]一点(點) (yīdiǎn)
⇒ Try to persuade her to eat a little.试着劝她吃点东西。 (Shìzhe quàn tā chī diǎn dōngxi.)
a little boy of 8一个(個)8岁(歲)的小男孩 (yī gè bāsuì de xiǎo nánhái)
a little bit (adj) 有点(點) (yǒudiǎn)
little by little逐渐(漸)地 (zhújiàn de)
little 和 a little 都用在不可数名词前,但是意义不同。例如,如果说 I have a little money,这是一个肯定的表达,说明你有钱。然而,如果说 I have little money,它就是一个否定的表达,意思是基本上没钱。