What part of speech is “less”

as an adjective, 'less' describes a noun as being of a smaller quantity, degree, or importance.

I have the less expensive model of the car.

This path is the less traveled one.

She took the less challenging route.

'less' is often used with non-count nouns (like 'information' or 'advice'), while 'fewer' is used with count nouns (like 'apples' or 'days'). For example, 'less information' but 'fewer apples.'

as a pronoun, 'less' refers to a smaller amount or quantity of something, often standing in for a previously mentioned or understood noun.

I have less than she does.

He wants to spend less and save more.

They ate less and felt better.

'less' is often contrasted with 'more.' While 'more' indicates an increase, 'less' indicates a decrease.

as a preposition, 'less' indicates subtraction or reduction.

It costs $20, less the discount.

He scored 100 points, less 10 for mistakes.

The total is $50, less your credit.

this prepositional use of 'less' is more formal and less common in everyday speech.

as an adverb, 'less' modifies verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs to indicate a reduced degree or extent.

She is less interested than before.

The project became less complicated.

He appears less frequently these days.

be cautious not to confuse 'less' with 'least.' 'Least' is the superlative form, indicating the absolute minimum, while 'less' is comparative.