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| FUNCTION WORD |
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| /les/ |
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| 1 | a smaller amount
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| | 1a | used for referring to an amount that is smaller than another amount , smaller than before , or smaller than you expected 较少的（量）；较小的（量） | | You should eat less and exercise more. 你应该少吃多运动。 | | The industry operates with less government control these days. 如今政府对该产业的控制减少了。 | | less...than The new Ford is designed to use less fuel than earlier models. 按设计，新型福特汽车消耗的燃料比旧型的少。 | | The workers earn less now than they did ten years ago. 现在工人挣的钱比10年前少。 | | +of I aim to spend less of my time travelling from place to place. 我打算少花些时间在旅游上。 | | a little/bit less I wish you’ d do a bit less talking and a bit more work. 我希望你少说些话多做些事。 | | much/a lot/far less Payments will be a lot less than many people were expecting. 报酬要比许多人期望的少得多。 | | There is far less trouble in the region now than there has ever been. 如今这个地区的骚乱比以往任何一个时候都少得多。 | |
| | 1b | used before a number or amount to say that the actual number or amount is smaller than this 少于（某一数目或数量） | | It costs less than £50 to fly to Rome. 坐飞机到罗马的费用还不到50英镑。 | | His death was the second skiing tragedy in less than a week. 他的死亡成了不到一周时间里的第二起滑雪悲剧。 | | In some areas there is a less than 30% turnout in local elections. 在一些地区，参加地方选举的人还不到30%。 | |
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| 2 | used in making comparisons
used for saying that there is not as much of a particular quality in one person or thing as in another , or not as much as there was before （用于比较）比…少 |
| Farmers are having to work with older, less efficient equipment. 农民们只好用较陈旧的、效率较低的设备干活儿。 |
| less...than Many women are involved in the movement, but less publicly than men. 许多妇女参与了这次运动，但不像男子那么公开。 |
| much/a lot/far less The homework was a lot less difficult than I expected. 家庭作业远比我想象的容易。 |
| less of a Getting there is less of a problem if you have a car. 如果你有汽车，到那儿不是什么问题。 |
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| 3 | not happening as much
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| | 3a | happening or doing something fewer times or for shorter periods of time 次数较少地；时间较短地 | | We’ ve been trying to use the telephone less this month to keep costs down. 这个月我们一直设法少用电话以降低费用。 | | less than We talk a lot less than we used to. 我们交谈的次数比以前少多了。 | |
| | 3b | to a smaller degree 程度较轻地 | | less...than My husband worries about things less than I do. 我丈夫不像我这么事事担心。 | | not...any (the) less Even after she told me, I didn’ t respect her any less. 即便在她告诉我之后，我对她的尊重一点儿也没有减少。 | |
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| 4 | taking a number away
used in front of a number or amount to state that it should be taken away from another number or amount that you have just mentioned 不计，扣除（数目或数量） |
| We made £2,000 profit on the deal, less tax. 扣税之后，这笔交易我们获得了2，000英镑的利润。 |
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| 5 | not as much like one thing as another
used for saying that one way of describing someone or something is not as true or as accurate as another 与其说…不如说… |
| less...than His statement was less an apology than a confession. 他的陈述与其说是道歉不如说是招供。 |
| The problem may be less a social issue than a legal one. 这个问题与其说是社会问题不如说它更有可能是个法律问题。 |
| PHRASES |
| - | in less than no time
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| extremely quickly |
| 极快地；一眨眼工夫 |
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| We called the fire brigade, which arrived in less than no time. 我们打电话给消防队，他们马上就赶到了。 |
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| - | less and less
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| gradually getting smaller in amount or degree |
| （数量）越来越少；（程度）越来越轻 |
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| Fishing was growing less and less profitable. 捕渔业越来越无利可图了。 |
| Though the public cares about the story less and less, the papers continue to report it. 尽管公众对这个传闻越来越不在意，但报纸仍在继续报道。 |
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| - | less of BRITISH spoken
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| used for telling someone to stop doing something |
| （用于告诉某人停止做某事） |
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| We’ ll have less of that rudeness, please. 我们收敛些吧。 |
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| - | the less...the less/more
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| used for saying that when a particular activity , feeling etc is reduced, it causes something else to change at the same time |
| （用于表明某种活动、情感等被抑制或削弱的同时引起另一事物的变化） |
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| Sometimes it seems like the less I do, the more tired I feel. 有时候我好像活儿干得越少就越觉得累。 |
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| - | less than honest/satisfactory/happy etc
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| used for saying that someone or something is not at all honestsatisfactoryhappy etc |
| 一点也不诚实/令人满意/高兴等 |
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| The director admits that he was less than enthusiastic about the new school uniforms. 主任承认说他过去对新校服一点兴趣也没有。 |
| It was obviously a less than perfect marriage. 很显然，这是一桩一点也不美满的婚姻。 |
| The President has been shown to be less than honest. 事实表明总统一点也不诚实。 |
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| - | no less
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| used for emphasizing that the person or thing you are talking about is very important |
| （用于强调所提及的人或事物极其重要）千真万确，一点不假 |
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| She received a visit from the Queen, no less. 她接受了女王的一次来访，千真万确。 |
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| - | no less than
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| 1 | used before a number or amount for saying that it is the lowest possible （数目或数量）不少于 | The hamburgers should contain no less than 50% meat. 汉堡包应夹有不少于50%的肉。 | |
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| 2 | used before a number or amount for showing that it is large and surprising （表明数目或数量大得令人惊奇）多达 | Exports have risen by no less than 80% in the last ten years. 在过去的10年里出口量增加了80%之多。 | |
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| - | nothing less than
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| used for emphasizing how important or serious something really is |
| （用于强调某事物的重要性或严重性）无异于，不亚于，完全 |
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| Their willingness to work together is nothing less than miraculous. 他们愿意共事简直是不可思议。 |
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| - | still/much/even less
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| used after a negative statement in order to emphasize that it applies even more to what you say next |
| （用于否定句后）更不用说，更何况 |
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| They are not interested in reading poetry, still less in writing it. 他们对读诗都不感兴趣，更不用说写诗了。 |
| I am no-one’ s spokesman, much less his. 我不为任何人代言，更别说是为他了。 |
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| LEFENTRY: less | | | | Both fewer and less can be used to refer to an amount that is smaller than another amount.Use fewer before plural nounsfewer 用于复数名词前: Fewer people turned up than expected. 来的人比预期的少。 There are fewer and fewer cheap restaurants in the area these days. 现在这个地区便宜的餐馆越来越少了。Use less before uncountable nouns用于不可数名词前: It was a lot less hassle going by plane. 坐飞机去麻烦少得多。 You’ ll get a smoother finish if you use less paint. 少用些漆表面会更光滑。 In informal English, some people now use less rather than fewer before plural nouns, although many people consider this to be incorrect. | | | |
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