lesser

Adjective

WordNet 3.0

Adjective (2)

  1. of less size or importance“the lesser anteater”“the lesser of two evils”
  2. smaller in size or amount or value“the lesser powers of Europe”“the lesser anteater”
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Lesser \Less"er\, adv. Less. [Obs.] --Shak. [1913 Webster]
Lesser \Less"er\ (l[e^]s"[~e]r), a. [This word is formed by adding anew the compar. suffix -er (in which r is from an original s) to less. See Less, a.] Less; smaller; inferior. [1913 Webster]

God made . . . the lesser light to rule the night. --Gen. i. 15. [1913 Webster]

Note: Lesser is used for less, now the compar. of little, in certain special instances in which its employment has become established by custom; as, Lesser Asia (i. e., Asia Minor), the lesser light, and some others; also in poetry, for the sake of the meter, and in prose where its use renders the passage more euphonious. [1913 Webster]

The more my prayer, the lesser is my grace.— Shak.[1913 Webster]
The larger here, and there the lesser lambs.— Pope.[1913 Webster]
By the same reason may a man, in the state of nature, punish the lesser breaches of the law.— Locke.[1913 Webster]
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