last

Less common meanings

7. 7
   verbtransitive

   To meet someone's needs for a given period without running out.

   A full charge will last you a whole day of normal use.

   The firewood we cut in October lasted us through the coldest part of winter.

   UsageThe person goes right after the verb, with no for: it will last you a day.

   Note

   The person served comes straight after the verb, with no for: it will last you a day, the wood lasted them all winter. That pronoun is what separates this use from the plain "endure" verb. The battery lasts a day says how long it works; it will last you a day says it covers your needs for that long.

8. 8
   least likelyadjective

   Farthest of all from what is wanted or expected; the most unlikely or least preferable.

   Of all his friends, she was the last one he expected to let him down.

   Borrowing money from relatives was the last option she wanted to consider.

   UsageIn set frames: the last person to + verb, the last thing I need.

   Note

   A superlative turned ironic: the last person to steal is the one least likely to. The same frame can praise a person's character or complain about an unwelcome turn of events.

9. 9
   at the bottomadjective

   Lowest in rank, importance, or degree.

   The committee ranked him last among all the candidates.

   In her parents' busy lives, her own needs always came last.

   UsageOften come last or rank last.

   Similarlowest, bottom, least

   Oppositefirst, highest, top

   Note

   Here the word measures standing rather than sequence: it marks the bottom rung of a ladder. It often pairs with a near-synonym for emphasis, as in Richard Cumberland's "the last and lowest of mankind" (1813). It also closes a range that runs from top to bottom: "from the patrician master to the last beggar." Because it names an endpoint, it takes no degrees, and nothing is "more last." Keep it apart from the "final" meaning, which is about order in a series. Source

   Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

   • The exact phrase "the last and lowest of mankind" occurs in Richard Cumberland's writing. en.wiktionary.org
   • The Last of the Family was first performed in 1797; its first publication was in The Posthumous Dramatick Works in 1813. upload.wikimedia.org
   • The quotation "from the patrician master to the last beggar" has the stated wording. upload.wikimedia.org
10. 10
    shoe formnouncountable

    A foot-shaped form, usually of wood or metal, used to shape or maintain the shape of a shoe.

    The shoemaker hammered the upper around the last.

    Each pair of custom shoes is built on a last molded to the client's foot.

    Note

    The shoemaker's last is a separate word again, from Old English lǣste. Its Germanic root meant "footprint," which suits a tool shaped like a foot. Dutch leest and German Leisten are its cousins. Cathy Newman's 2006 National Geographic piece points out that a spike-heeled boot and a man's oxford both begin on one. The verb names the work of fitting leather over it. Source

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 7 facts

    • The shoemaking noun is a separate word derived from Old English lǣste. en.wiktionary.org
    • Its Germanic root family had the meaning 'footprint'. en.wiktionary.org
    • A last is shaped like a foot. en.wikipedia.org
    • Dutch leest and German Leisten are cognates of English last. en.wiktionary.org
    • Cathy Newman wrote the cited National Geographic article in 2006. en.wiktionary.org
    • Newman's article says the spike-heeled boot and man's oxford are both made on a last. en.wiktionary.org
    • The shoemaking verb denotes shaping footwear on a last. en.wiktionary.org
11. 11
    utmostadjective

    Greatest in degree; highest possible; utmost.

    Contending for principles of the last importance.

    1802, Robert Hall, Reflections on War

    UsageMostly in of the last importance and to the last degree, meaning greatest, not least.

    Similarutmost, greatest, highest, supreme

    Note

    Robert Hall's 1802 phrase "principles of the last importance" shows the sense at work: something of the last importance matters supremely. Today the sense survives mainly in that phrase and in "to the last degree." It can mislead a modern reader, who may hear "least important," which is the opposite of what is meant. Source

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

    • Robert Hall used the exact phrase 'principles of the last importance'. upload.wikimedia.org
    • Hall's phrase denotes supreme importance. upload.wikimedia.org
12. 12
    delay orgasmverbslangintransitive

    To purposefully hold oneself back from reaching orgasm.

    He worried about not lasting long enough the first time they slept together.

    Couples sometimes share techniques that help one partner last.

    Note

    Bedroom slang, said of a man, that grows out of the enduring verb: to last is to hold off orgasm. It takes no object and usually comes with a measure, as in last longer or last through. Keep it to frank or joking talk. Because of this sense, an innocent "he couldn't last" can sound suggestive in the wrong setting. Source

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

    • The sexual meaning is a sense of the same verb that means to endure. en.wiktionary.org
13. 13
    every singleadjective

    Added after every to strengthen it, stressing that not a single one is missed or excluded.

    The auditors went through every last receipt from the sales trip.

    Every last seat in the stadium was filled for the championship game.

    Similarsingle

14. 14
    verb

    To shape a shoe, or fit and smooth its upper, by working it over a foot-shaped form.
15. 15
    verbobsolete

    To perform or carry out a task, duty, or command.
16. 16
    nounobsolete

    A burden, load, or cargo; freight being carried.
17. 17
    nounobsolete

    A former unit of weight, quantity or cargo capacity whose value varied with the goods and place; as a measure of a ship's capacity, about two tons.

    The last of wool is twelve sacks.

    1866, James Edwin Thorold Rogers, A History of Agriculture and Prices in England