letting - let - have let
money that Is lent to someone
loan -laon [n C] an amount of money that someone has borrowed; The bank offered him a loan of £15,000 to set up
a business.
LESS
opposite more see also least
if you want to know about using adjectives for comparing things, go to the essential grammar/ section 14
a smaller amount or number
(ess les [qucntifierj a smaller amount of something: You ought to eat less meat. I
It'll cost about $50 - maybe less.
+ than Harry knows even less than I do about this business.
+ of I'd like to spend less of my time at work.
less and less (=when an amount keeps getting smaller as time passes) As the drought became worse, there teas less and less food available.
Use less with uncountable nouns like 'money', 'food', or 'information'. In formal writing it is incorrect to use less with countable nouns, like 'pens', 'shops', or 'students'. But in ordinary conversation, less is often used in this way.
fewer fju:3r [quantifier] a smaller number of people or things: There are fewer jobs available nowadays. + than Women are having fewer children than they used to.
far fewer (=a lot fewer) Far fewer people go to church these days.
Use fewer with countable nouns like 'pens', 'shops' or 'students', and never with uncountable nouns.
aot as much ,' nnt ж mAtJ less than an
amount
+ as The Chinese don't eat as much meat as the Americans. I Let's rent an apartment - it won't cost as much as a hotel.
Use not as much with uncountable
Use not as many with countable nouns, like 'pens', 'shops', or 'students', but never with uncountable nouns.
nouns, like 'time', 'money', or 'food', but never with countable nouns. Use not as many with countable nouns.
aot as marty ^nnt эх meni fewer than a
number of people or things + as There weren't as many people there this year as last year. I I have quite a few CDs. but not as many as Becky has.
lower U)or [adj] less than another number or level - use this about prices, temperatures. marks for schoolwork, and
other things that can be measured on a scale from high to low: Foreign workers have fewer rights end get lower wages. 1 In the mountains the temperature is much lower.
+ than I got lower grades than the other students in my class.
less than a particular number or amount
less than 'les 6<?n Some of the miners were earning less than $2 an hour. I They've built another hotel less than a mile from here.
under ,\ndor [preposition] less than a particular age, price, amount, or number: It's illegal to sell cigarettes to children under 16. I Where can you get a meal for under $5?
just under (=slightly less than) The baby weighed just under three kilos.
below Ы'Ы [preposition] less than a particular temperature, speed, limit, or
level. At night the temperature is often below freezing.
Don't use less with very short words. Don't say 'less good/bad/tall etc'. Say not as good, not as bad, not as tall etc. In spoken English, is more common
than less.
fail below (=become less than) The rate of inflation has fallen below 6%.
less interesting, expensive, difficult, exciting etc
not as not ^7.:' Their first album sold
over a million copies, but the second one wasn't as popular. not as...as It's not as cold as it was yesterday. I Our house isn't as big as yours. I "How was the test?" "Not as bad as I expected."
less les [adu] The dentist gave me an injection to make it less painful. (ess...than I want something less formal than a traditional wedding dress.
431
LESS
Г
when something happens less than before
less /les/[adu]
+ than This type of problem still occurs, but less than it did in the past, a lot (ess Since we got the car,; we walk a lot less than we used to. (ess and (ess (=when something keeps getting less as time passes) He seemed to care less and less about the bandr and eventually decided to leave.
not as much /not эг 'пш// She used to
Less and not as much mean the same, but they combine with different words. In spoken English, not as much is more common than less.
really hate her job, but she doesn't seem to complain as much now. + as "Do you still go swimming?'' "Not as much as I used to."
when prices, numbers etc become less
go down/come down gso 'daun,
,клт 'daun/ (phrasal verb I] to become less: The suicide rate has gone down in the last few years. I I'm hoping the price will come down if I wait a while.
/all/drop /foil, drop||dra:p/ [v I] to become less, especially by a large amount: Airfares to Hong Kong have fallen dramatically because of increased competition.
+ to At night, the temperature drops to
-20 °C.
/all/drop from stH to sth Profits fell
LESS
from £98.5 million to £76 million.
falling - fell - have fallen dropping - dropped - have dropped
Fall and drop are mostly used in written English. In spoken English, go down and come down are more common.
decrease /di'kri'.s/ [и I] to become less - used especially in writing about business or technical subjects: If a company improves its efficiency, its costs will decrease. + to The speed of rotation gradually decreases to zero.
decreasing [adj only before nounj decreasing levels of carbon dioxide in the air
to make something less
reduce /n'dju:s||rrdu:s/ lu T] to make something less in amount or leveclass="underline" Try to reduce the amount of fat in your diet. I I was hoping they would reduce the price a little. I Yoga and meditation can help to reduce stress, reduce sth by hal//10%/2 years etc The new road will reduce traffic through the
town by 30%.
reduced [adj] Most airlines offer reduced rates for children.