little
/ˈlɪtl/adjective
उच्चारण लिटल
छोटा; थोड़ा
Basic word
- 1
- 1
(used with uncountable nouns) not much; (a little) a small amount of something; some but not much
थोड़ा; बहुत कम
- There is little hope.
- Add a little salt.
- There is little water left in the well.
+ 2 more examples
- Add a little sugar if the sauce tastes sour.
- She had very little time to prepare for the interview.
§Structures (grammar patterns) 4
little + uncountable noun (not much)
Without a, little means almost none and sounds negative; it is used with uncountable nouns.
'A' के बिना 'little' का अर्थ लगभग कुछ नहीं होता है और नकारात्मक लगता है; यह uncountable nouns के साथ आता है।
- There is little hope of rain this week.
- He has little interest in cricket.
a little + uncountable noun (some)
With a, a little means a small amount that is enough, and the tone is positive.
'A' के साथ 'a little' का अर्थ थोड़ी, पर पर्याप्त मात्रा है, और भाव सकारात्मक होता है।
- Add a little sugar to the tea.
- I know a little Sanskrit.
little (adjective of size) before a noun
As an adjective of size, little usually comes before a noun and often shows affection; it has no comparative form littler in good style.
आकार के adjective के रूप में 'little' प्रायः noun से पहले आता है और स्नेह दर्शाता है; अच्छी शैली में इसका comparative 'littler' नहीं लिया जाता।
- Radhika lives in a little house near the river.
- The little boy held his mother's hand.
little by little / as little as
Little by little means gradually, and as little as stresses how small an amount is.
'Little by little' का अर्थ धीरे-धीरे है, और 'as little as' मात्रा की कमी पर ज़ोर देता है।
- Little by little, her English improved.
- You can start with as little as a hundred rupees.
+Collocations 5
little + noun (small amount)
timemoneyhopedoubtsleep
- We have little time left before the exam.
adverb + little
verytoosoratherquite a
- There is very little water in the well in May.
fixed phrases
a little bitlittle by littlea little whilelittle or nomake little of
- Wait a little while; the doctor will see you soon.
little + noun (small size)
fingertoevillagebirdchild
- A little bird sat on the window sill.
little with verbs
care little forthink little ofknow little aboutmatter little
- He knows little about computers.
“More examples 5
- The little girl in the red frock won the drawing contest.
लाल फ्रॉक वाली छोटी बच्ची ने चित्रकला प्रतियोगिता जीती।
- Little did he know that the exam had been postponed.
उसे बिलकुल पता नहीं था कि परीक्षा स्थगित हो चुकी है।
- The shop sells little else except stationery.
दुकान पर स्टेशनरी के अलावा लगभग और कुछ नहीं बिकता।
- Add a little salt, not too much.
थोड़ा नमक डालिए, बहुत ज़्यादा नहीं।
- Our school has very little space for sports.
हमारे विद्यालय में खेलकूद के लिए बहुत कम जगह है।
!Common mistakes 2
✗ I have few money in my pocket.
✓ I have little money in my pocket.
Money is uncountable, so little is used, not few.
Money uncountable है, इसलिए little आता है, few नहीं।
✗ I want a little books for the exam.
✓ I want a few books for the exam.
Books is countable, so use a few, not a little.
Books countable है, इसलिए 'a few' आता है, 'a little' नहीं।
≠Thesaurus: which synonym when
Little, a little and few are about quantity, and the choice depends on whether the noun is countable.
Little, a little और few मात्रा के बारे में हैं, और चुनाव इस पर निर्भर करता है कि noun countable है या नहीं।
Almost none; used with uncountable nouns and with a negative feeling.
लगभग नहीं के बराबर; uncountable nouns के साथ और नकारात्मक भाव में।
- We have little time.
Almost none, but for countable plural nouns.
लगभग नहीं के बराबर, पर countable plural nouns के लिए।
- Few students passed.
Not large in size; used for physical size without feeling.
आकार में बड़ा नहीं; बिना भावना के भौतिक आकार के लिए।
- It is a small room.
¶Idioms 3
little by little
slowly; gradually
धीरे-धीरे, थोड़ा-थोड़ा करके
- Little by little, Radhika's English improved.
- The water level rose little by little.
little or nothing
hardly anything
लगभग कुछ भी नहीं
- He knows little or nothing about farming.
- There is little or nothing we can do now.
make little of sth
to treat sth as not being important
(किसी बात को) मामूली समझना, ज़्यादा महत्व न देना
- He made little of his injury and carried on playing.
- She made little of her own role in the success.
≈Synonyms and antonyms
§Grammar and usage
Little (almost none, negative meaning: 'There is little water left', so we may have a problem) and a little (some, positive meaning: 'There is a little water left', so we are fine); the same difference applies to few (almost none) and a few (some) with plural nouns; the little (the small amount that exists: 'She spent the little money she had'); comparison: little, less, least (amount) but small, smaller, smallest (size).
यह बहुत पूछा जाता है: little (लगभग कुछ नहीं, नकारात्मक अर्थ: 'There is little water left', इसलिए समस्या हो सकती है) और a little (कुछ, सकारात्मक अर्थ: 'There is a little water left', इसलिए ठीक है); plural nouns के साथ few (लगभग कोई नहीं) और a few (कुछ) में भी यही अंतर है; the little (जो थोड़ी मात्रा है वह: 'She spent the little money she had'); तुलना में little, less, least (मात्रा) पर small, smaller, smallest (आकार)।
“Collocations, idioms and sayings
Little by little (gradually), a little bird told me (I heard it from somebody I won't name), make little of (treat as unimportant), little or nothing (almost nothing).
Idioms: little by little (धीरे-धीरे), a little bird told me (मैंने किसी से सुना जिसका नाम नहीं बताऊँगा), make little of (महत्वहीन मानना), little or nothing (लगभग कुछ नहीं)।
'A little learning is a dangerous thing.'
कहावत 'A little learning is a dangerous thing' (नीम हकीम ख़तरा-ए-जान)।