# last

Pronunciation: US say "LAST" /læst/; UK say "LAHST" /lɑːst/

## Determiner

1. Coming just before the present, like the previous week, month or year. With a named day, it usually means the most recent one, though some mean the one in the previous week.
   - Simple: The one just before this one, as in 'last week' or 'last Thursday'.
   - _Sales were stronger last quarter than the company had predicted._
   - _Last month the team finally shipped the product._

## Adjective

2. Coming after all others of its kind; final, with nothing following, or the only one remaining.
   - Simple: Coming at the end, after all the others, or the only one left.
   - _The last train of the night leaves the station at midnight._
   - _They saved their strongest argument for the last round of the debate._
4. Most recent; the latest one so far, with none newer appearing yet.
   - Simple: Most recent up to now, with no newer one yet.
   - _The company's last earnings report exceeded analysts' expectations._
   - _In his last interview, the author hinted at a new novel._
8. Farthest of all from what is wanted or expected; the most unlikely or least preferable.
   - Simple: Being the most unlikely or least wanted choice of all.
   - _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._
9. Lowest in rank, importance, or degree.
   - Simple: Lowest in rank or worth, and least important.
   - _The committee ranked him last among all the candidates._
   - _In her parents' busy lives, her own needs always came last._
11. Greatest in degree; highest possible; utmost.
   - Simple: Greatest or highest in amount or degree.
13. Added after every to strengthen it, stressing that not a single one is missed or excluded.
   - Simple: Used after "every" to say that all of them are included, with not one left out.
   - _The auditors went through every last receipt from the sales trip._
   - _Every last seat in the stadium was filled for the championship game._

## Verb

3. To continue to exist, work or hold out over a period of time without ending, wearing out or being defeated.
   - Simple: To keep going or stay in good condition for a period of time.
   - _Good walking boots can last for many years with proper care._
   - _The drought lasted through most of the summer._
7. To meet someone's needs for a given period without running out.
   - Simple: To be enough for what someone needs for a certain amount of time.
   - _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._
12. To purposefully hold oneself back from reaching orgasm. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To hold yourself back on purpose so you do not reach orgasm.
   - _He worried about not lasting long enough the first time they slept together._
   - _Couples sometimes share techniques that help one partner last._

## Adverb

5. At the most recent time; on the most recent occasion before now.
   - Simple: At the most recent time before now.
   - _The bridge was last inspected over a decade ago._
   - _She last performed on that stage as a teenager._
6. After everything else has happened; finally, at the end of a sequence.
   - Simple: After all other things, at the very end.
   - _The keynote speaker addressed the conference last, closing the day._
   - _Of all the courses served, the dessert came last._

## Noun

10. A foot-shaped form, usually of wood or metal, used to shape or maintain the shape of a shoe.
   - Simple: A foot-shaped block used to make or repair shoes.
   - _The shoemaker hammered the upper around the last._
   - _Each pair of custom shoes is built on a last molded to the client's foot._

## Other meanings

- (verb) To shape a shoe, or fit and smooth its upper, by working it over a foot-shaped form.
- (verb) To perform or carry out a task, duty, or command.
- (noun) A burden, load, or cargo; freight being carried.
- (noun) 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.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–2, 4–6, 8–9, 11, 13** — From Middle English laste (also latst), a syncopated variant of "latest."
**Meanings 3, 7, 12** — In Old English the verb was lǣstan, and Middle English made it lasten. Its older forms are reconstructed as *laistijan in Proto-West Germanic and *laistijaną in Proto-Germanic. A German relative, leisten, means "yield".
**Meaning 10** — Proto-Germanic *laistiz gave Old English lǣste. Proto-Germanic also had *laistaz ("footprint"), and Swedish läst, Dutch leest and German Leisten are comparable.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/last (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).