English
low
see also: Low
Pronunciation Adjective

low (comparative lower, superlative lowest)

  1. Situated close to, or even below, the ground or another normal reference plane; not high or lofty.
    standing on low ground in a low valley, ringed by low hills a low wall a low shelf
    • 2012, Tyler Jo Smith, ‎Dimitris Plantzos, A Companion to Greek Art (ISBN 1118273370):
      Narrative friezes in low relief were characteristic of Ionic architecture.
    1. Pertaining to (or, especially of a language: spoken in) in an area which is at a lesser elevation, closer to sea level (especially near the sea), than other regions.
      the low countries Low German
    2. (baseball, of a ball) Below the batter's knees.
      the pitch (or: the ball) was low
  2. Of less than normal height; below the average or normal level from which elevation is measured.
    a low bow a low tide the Mississippi is unusually low right now
  3. Not high in status, esteem or rank, dignity, or quality. (Compare vulgar.)
    low birth low rank the low officials of the bureaucracy low-quality fabric playing low tricks on them a person of low mind
    Now that was low even for you!
    • 1971, Keystone Folklore Quarterly, volume 16, page 208:
      Therefore they must have been common in the 16th century also among the folk first of all not as a high festival food but rather as a low festival and Sunday food, if our experience proves accurate.
    • 1720, The Delphick oracle, page 35:
      Low-Sunday, is the Sunday after Easter, and is so call'd, because it is a low Festival in Comparison of that Day whereon Christ arose from Death to Life again.
  4. Humble, meek, not haughty.
  5. Disparaging; assigning little value or excellence.
    She had a low opinion of cats. He took a low view of dogs.
    • 1826, Ebenezer Erskine, The Whole Works of the Rev. Ebenezer Erskine, Sermon VII, page 103:
      The humble soul has low thoughts of his own person; as David, 'I am a worm, and no man.'
  6. Being a nadir, a bottom.
    the low point in her career
    • 2012, Faith Hartmann, Only a Fool Would Have Believed It in the First Place (ISBN 1479735930):
      Virginia, for example, reached such a low point in her junior year that she briefly considered suicide [...]
  7. Depressed in mood, dejected, sad.
    low spirits
  8. Lacking health or vitality, strength or vivacity; feeble; weak.
    a low pulse
    made (or: laid) low by sickness
  9. Small, not high (in amount or quantity, value, force, energy, etc).
    My credit union charges a low interest rate.   Jogging during a whiteout, with such low temperatures and low visibility, is dangerous.   The store sold bread at low prices, and milk at even lower prices.   The contractors gave a low estimate of the costs.   low cholesterol   a low voltage wire   a low number
    • 1989, Bernard Smith, Sailloons and Fliptackers: The Limits to High-speed Sailing (ISBN 0930403657):
      Unfortunately, low winds were the rule over the local waters and this craft was no better, if as good, as ordinary sailboats under such conditions.
    1. Having a small or comparatively smaller concentration of (a substance, which is often but not always linked by "in" when predicative).
      diets low in vitamin A   made from low-carbon steel
    2. Depleted, or nearing deletion; lacking in supply.
      running low on cash
  10. (especially in biology) Simple in complexity or development; (in several set phrases) favoring simplicity; (see e.g. low church, Low Tory).
    low protozoan animals, low cryptogamic plants, and other low organisms
  11. (in several set phrases) Being near the equator.
    the low northern latitudes
  12. (acoustics) Grave in pitch, due to being produced by relatively slow vibrations (wave oscillations); flat.
    The note was too low for her to sing.
    Generally, European men have lower voices than their Indian counterparts.
  13. Quiet; soft; not loud.
    They spoke in low voices so I would not hear what they were saying.
    Why would you want to play heavy metal at such a low volume?
  14. (phonetics) Made with a relatively large opening between the tongue and the palate; made with (part of) the tongue positioned low in the mouth, relative to the palate.
  15. (card games) Lesser in value than other cards, denominations, suits, etc.
    a low card
  16. (archaic) Not rich, seasoned, or nourishing; plain, simple.
    a low diet
  17. (of an, automobile, gear, etc) Designed for a slow (or the slowest) speed.
    low gear
Synonyms Antonyms
  • (in a position comparatively close to the ground) high
  • (small in length) tall
Related terms Translations Translations
  • French: bas
  • Italian: basso
  • Portuguese: baixo
  • Russian: ни́зкий
Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Noun

low (plural lows)

  1. Something that is low; a low point.
    You have achieved a new low in behavior, Frank.
    Economic growth has hit a new low.
  2. The minimum value attained by some quantity within a specified period.
    Unemployment has reached a ten-year low.
  3. A depressed mood or situation.
    He is in a low right now
  4. (meteorology) An area of low pressure; a depression.
    A deep low is centred over the British Isles.
  5. The lowest-speed gearing of a power-transmission system, especially of an automotive vehicle.
    Shift out of low before the car gets to eight miles per hour.
  6. (card games) The lowest trump, usually the deuce; the lowest trump dealt or drawn.
  7. (slang) (usually accompanied by "the") a cheap, cost-efficient, or advantageous payment or expense.
    He got the brand new Yankees jersey for the low.
Translations Translations Translations Adverb

low (comparative lower, superlative lowest)

  1. Close to the ground.
  2. Of a pitch, at a lower frequency.
    • c. 1601–1602, William Shakespeare, “Twelfe Night, or VVhat You VVill”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358 ↗, [Act II, scene iii]:
      Can sing both high and low.
  3. With a low voice or sound; not loudly; gently.
    to speak low
    • ?, Alfred Tennyson, Eleanor
      The […] odorous wind / Breathes low between the sunset and the moon.
  4. Under the usual price; at a moderate price; cheaply.
    He sold his wheat low.
  5. In a low mean condition; humbly; meanly.
  6. In a time approaching our own.
    • 1689 December (indicated as 1690)​, [John Locke], Two Treatises of Government: […], London: […] Awnsham Churchill, […], OCLC 83985187 ↗:
      In that part of the world which was first inhabited, […] even as low down as Abraham's time, they wandered with their flocks and herds.
  7. (astronomy) In a path near the equator, so that the declination is small, or near the horizon, so that the altitude is small; said of the heavenly bodies with reference to the diurnal revolution.
    The moon runs low, i.e. comparatively near the horizon when on or near the meridian.
Translations Translations Translations Verb

low (lows, present participle lowing; past and past participle lowed)

  1. (obsolete, transitive) To depress; to lower.
Verb
  1. (obsolete) simple past of laugh#English|laugh.
Pronunciation Verb

low (lows, present participle lowing; past and past participle lowed)

  1. (intransitive) To moo.
    The cattle were lowing.
    • Q en
    • 1869 May, Anthony Trollope, “The Honourable Mr. Glascock”, in He Knew He Was Right, volume I, London: Strahan and Company, publishers, […], OCLC 1118026626 ↗, page 107 ↗:
      It would have been a great privilege to be the mistress of an old time-honoured mansion, to call oaks and elms her own, to know that acres of gardens were submitted to her caprices, to look at herds of cows and oxen, and be aware that they lowed on her own pastures.
Pronunciation Noun

low (plural lows)

  1. (countable, UK, Scotland, dialect) A flame; fire; blaze.
Verb

low (lows, present participle lowing; past and past participle lowed)

  1. (UK, Scotland, dialect) To burn; to blaze.
Pronunciation Noun

low (plural lows)

  1. (archaic or obsolete) Barrow, mound, tumulus.
  2. (Scottish dialectal, archaic) A hill.
Low
Proper noun
  1. Surname


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