Library / English Dictionary

AT LEAST

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (adverb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Not less than

Example:

a tumor at least as big as an orange

Synonyms:

at least; at the least

Classified under:

Adverbs

Antonym:

at most (not more than)

Sense 2

Meaning:

If nothing else ('leastwise' is informal and 'leastways' is colloquial)

Example:

the influence of economists--or at any rate of economics--is far-reaching

Synonyms:

at any rate; at least; leastways; leastwise

Classified under:

Adverbs

Domain usage:

colloquialism (a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech)

Credits

 Context examples: 

I have heard you mention them with consideration these last twenty years at least.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

A group of at least three distinct histological types of lung cancer, including squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma.

(Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma, NCI Thesaurus)

In humans hereditary defects in the NER pathway are linked to at least three diseases: xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), Cockayne syndrome (CS), and trichothiodystrophy (TTD).

(Nucleotide Excision Repair Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/KEGG)

A non taxonomic grouping of bacteria assigned to and including at least four related species from the Nocardia genus.

(Nocardia asteroides Complex, NCI Thesaurus)

All states test for at least 30 of these conditions.

(Newborn Screening, NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)

Indicates a neutrophil count of at least 1000 per cubic millimeter.

(Neutrophil Count 1000, NCI Thesaurus)

Indicates a neutrophil count of at least 500 per cubic millimeter.

(Neutrophil Count 500, NCI Thesaurus)

If I should be engaged, I will at least make notes.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

If I had my way, I'd have Cap'n Smollett work us back into the trades at least; then we'd have no blessed miscalculations and a spoonful of water a day.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

There is usually nerve damage that causes at least some paralysis of the legs.

(Neural Tube Defects, NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)