slight
adjective /slaɪt/
/slaɪt/
(comparative slighter, superlative slightest)
Idioms - very small in degree
- a slight increase/change/difference
- a slight variation/improvement/advantage
- It won't make the slightest bit of difference
- There's been a slight delay, but we'll be landing in just a few minutes.
- Mexican producers may gain a slight edge in competitiveness.
- A slight smile appeared on her lips.
- I woke up with a slight headache.
- The damage was slight.
- She takes offence at the slightest thing (= is very easily offended).
- There was not the slightest hint of trouble.
- He is, without the slightest doubt, the greatest living novelist.
- He never had the slightest intention of agreeing to it.
- The picture was at a slight angle.
- A slight breeze was blowing.
Extra Examples- She smiled to hide her slight embarrassment.
- She spoke with a slight foreign accent.
- The accident had left him with a slight limp.
- The eyes of predators are highly sensitive to the slightest movement.
- The slightest touch will set off the alarm.
- There's been a slight increase in the number of unemployed in this area.
- The slightest noise will wake him.
- Unfortunately, this plate has a slight flaw in it.
- You may experience some slight discomfort after the operation.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- appear
- be
- seem
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- the slightest of…
- small and thin in size
- a slight woman
- He was of slight build.
- She was smaller and slighter than I had imagined.
Extra ExamplesTopics Appearancec2- She looked very slight, almost fragile.
- The slight figure of a woman emerged from the house.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- look
- very
- physically
- (formal) not deserving serious attention
- This is a very slight novel.
Word OriginMiddle English; the adjective from Old Norse sléttr ‘smooth’ (an early sense in English), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch slechts ‘merely’ and German schlicht ‘simple’, schlecht ‘bad’; the verb (originally in the sense ‘make smooth or level’), from Old Norse slétta. The sense “treat with disrespect” dates from the late 16th cent.
Idioms
not in the slightest
- not at all
- He didn't seem to mind in the slightest.
- I’m not in the slightest bit interested.