-less

See also: less

English

Alternative forms

• -lesse (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English -les, -leas, from Old English -lēas (“-less”) (compare lēas (“devoid of, loose from, false”)), from Proto-West Germanic *-laus, from Proto-Germanic *-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 (“-less”), Low German -los, German -los, Danish -løs, Swedish -lös, Icelandic -laus. More at lease (“false”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ləs/, /lɪs/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Suffix

-less

1. 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.

1. • 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.

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

English terms suffixed with -less

abashless

aberrationless

abodeless

abuseless

accentless

acceptorless

accessless

accessoryless

accountless

acheless

acidless

acquaintanceless

acreless

acrosomeless

actionless

activationless

actless

Adamless

addressless

adhesionless

adjectiveless

adless

adventureless

adverbless

adviceless

affairless

affectionless

affectless

afflictionless

ageless

agendaless

agentless

aidless

aimless

airbagless

airless

airportless

aisleless

aitchless

alarmless

albumless

alcoholless

alertless

alibiless

allyless

almondless

almsless

altarless

ambassadorless

ambitionless

Americanless

ammunitionless

amnionless

ampless

anatomiless

anchorless

angelless

angerless

angleless

angstless

anguishless

ankleless

answerless

antennaless

anthemless

antherless

anthocyaninless

antlerless

antless

anusless

apartmentless

apertureless

apostropheless

appealless

appeaseless

appendageless

appendixless

appetiteless

applauseless

appleless

approachless

apronless

archless

argumentless

aristaless

armatureless

armless

armorless

armyless

aromaless

arrowless

arseless

articleless

artless

asbestosless

ashless

aspectless

assertionless

assetless

assistless

assless

asteriskless

asterless

atmosphereless

atomless

attemptless

attentionless

atticless

attributeless

audienceless

augmentless

auntless

auraless

authorityless

authorless

autoless

automobileless

avocadoless

avoidless

aweless

awnless

axeless

axiomless

axleless

axless

axonless

babyless

backboneless

backless

baconless

bacterialess

badgeless

baeless

baggageless

bagless

bairnless

baitless

bakerless

baleless

ballastless

ball-less

ballless

balloonless

ballotless

balmless

bananaless

bandless

bangleless

bangless

bankerless

bankless

bannerless

barbless

barkless

barless

barnless

barrelless

barrierless

baryonless

baseless

basementless

bashless

basinless

basketless

bassless

bastardless

bateless

bathless

bathroomless

batless

batonless

battenless

batterless

batteryless

bayless

beachless

beaconless

beadless

beakless

beamless

beanless

beardless

bearingless

bearless

beatless

beauless

beautiless

beautyless

beaverless

bedless

bedroomless

beechless

beefless

beeless

beerless

beginningless

beingless

beliefless

bellyless

beltless

Translations

lacking

• Abkhaz: -ыда (-əda)
• Acehnese: hana
• Afar: sinni
• Afrikaans: ont-
• Albanian: pa (sq)
• Arabic: بِلَا (bilā), غَيْر ... (ar) (ḡayr ...)
• Armenian: ան- (an-)
• Azerbaijani: -siz
• Basque: -gabe
• Belarusian: без- (bjez-)
• Bengali: -হীন (bn) (-hin)
• Bulgarian: без (bg) (bez)
• Catalan: sense (ca)
• Cebuano: walay
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 無- / 无- (zh) (wú-)

• Chuvash: -сӗр (-sĕr)
• Czech: bez- (cs)
• Danish: -løs (da)
• Dutch: -loos (nl), zonder (nl)
• Esperanto: sen- (eo)
• Estonian: -ta, -tu
• Faroese: -leysur
• Finnish: -ton (fi), -tön (fi)
• French: sans ... (fr)
• Galician: sen (gl)
• Georgian: უ- (u-), უ- -ო (u- -o), არა- (ara-)
• German: -los (de)
• Greek: α- (el) (a-), αν- (el) (an-)
• Gujarati: -હીન (-hīn)
• Haitian Creole: e-
• Hausa: mara (ha), marasa
• Hebrew: אל (he) ('ál-)
• Hindi: काटा दिया (kāṭā diyā)
• Hungarian: -talan (hu)/-telen (hu), -atlan (hu)/-etlen (hu), -tlan (hu)/-tlen (hu), -hatatlan (hu)/-hetetlen (hu), mentes (hu), nélküli (hu)
• Iban: nadai
• Icelandic: -laus, -vana
• Ido: sen-
• Igbo: enweghị
• Indonesian: nir-
• Irish: gan (ga)
• Italian: senza (it), in- (it), s- (it), dis- (it)
• Japanese: -無し (ja) (-なし, -nashi), 無- (ja) (む-, mu-), -ない (ja) (-nai), 低- (てい-, tei-)
• Kannada: -ವಿಲ್ಲದ (-villada)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: bê- (ku)

• Kyrgyz: -сыз (-sız)
• Lao: ບໍ່ມີ (bǭ mī)
• Latin: sine (la), in-, ne-, se-
• Latvian: bez
• Lithuanian: be-
• Luo: onge
• Macedonian: без- (bez-)
• Malay: nir-, nis- (preceding vowels and letters k, t and c)
• Mari:

  Eastern Mari: -дыме (-dyme)

• Mongolian: -гүй (-güj)
• Nepali: -न- (-na-)
• Norwegian: -løs (no)
• Papiamentu: sin
• Persian: (prefix) بیـ (bi-)
• Polish: bez- (pl)
• Portuguese: sem (pt), des- (pt)
• Punjabi: -ਹੀਨ (-hīn)
• Romani: bi-
• Romanian: fără (ro)
• Russian: без(ъ)- (ru) (bez(ʺ)-) / бес(ъ)- (ru) (bes(ʺ)-)
• Scottish Gaelic: gun
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: без-

  Roman: bez-

• Slovak: bez-
• Slovene: brez (sl)
• Spanish: sin (es), des- (es)
• Swahili: bila (sw)
• Swedish: -lös (sv)
• Tagalog: pugot ang, walang
• Telugu: -లేని (-lēni)
• Turkish: -siz (tr), -sız (tr), -suz (tr), -süz (tr)
• Udmurt: -тэм (-tem)
• Ukrainian: без- (uk) (bez-)
• Venda: zwisina, asina
• Vietnamese: cây đinh không
• Welsh: di- (cy), di
• West Frisian: -leas
• Yiddish: ־לאָז (-loz)
• Yoruba: àìní

Anagrams

• ELSS, SELs, SLEs

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English -les, from Old English -lēas (“-less”).

Suffix

-less

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