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I think the word 'earnest' kind of has a negative connotation on some level. I think one of the things that's happened is that being cynical is somehow conflated with being sophisticated. I think that's problematic, to say the least.
Josh Radnor

Meaning of "to say the least" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF TO SAY THE LEAST

to say the least play
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WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE TO SAY THE LEAST

to put sth to rights
to put the fluence on sb
to put the mocks on
to put years on sb
to put your thinking cap on
to raise unshirted hell
to rights
to rule sb with a high hand
to save one´s life
to say nothing of
to show sb the ropes
to sing from the same song sheet
to someone´s face
to sow gapeseed
to sow your oats
to spare
to speak of
to spill your guts
to start with
to take a pounding

WORDS THAT END LIKE TO SAY THE LEAST

abreast
at least
at the least
beast
breast
chicken breast
east
feast
in the least
last but not least
least
Mideast
moveable feast
northeast
southeast
the east
the least
the northeast
the Southeast
yeast

Synonyms and antonyms of to say the least in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «TO SAY THE LEAST»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «to say the least» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of to say the least

Translation of «to say the least» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF TO SAY THE LEAST

Find out the translation of to say the least to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of to say the least from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «to say the least» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

至少可以说,
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

por decir lo menos
570 millions of speakers

English

to say the least
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

कम से कम कहने के लिए
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

على أقل تقدير
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

по меньшей мере
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

para dizer o mínimo
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

অন্তত বলতে
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

pour dire le moins
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Untuk sekurang-kurangnya
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

gelinde gesagt
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

控えめに言っても
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

적어도 대답
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Kanggo paling ora
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

để nói rằng ít nhất
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

குறைந்தபட்சம் சொல்ல
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

किमान सांगणे
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

kısaca söylemek gerekirse
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

per non dire altro
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

co najmniej
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

щонайменше
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

pentru a spune cel mai puțin
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

για να πούμε το λιγότερο
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

om die minste te sê
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

minst sagt
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

for å si det mildt
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of to say the least

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «TO SAY THE LEAST»

The term «to say the least» is very widely used and occupies the 2.550 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Very widely used
98
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «to say the least» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of to say the least
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «to say the least».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «TO SAY THE LEAST» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «to say the least» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «to say the least» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about to say the least

EXAMPLES

10 QUOTES WITH «TO SAY THE LEAST»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word to say the least.
1
Bob Barr
Taking privacy cues from the federal government is - to say the least - ironic, considering today's Orwellian level of surveillance. At virtually any given time outside of one's own home, an American citizen can reasonably assume his movements and actions are being monitored by something, by somebody, somewhere.
2
Mark Feuerstein
Okay, so, sometimes in life, I can be a score-keeper - someone who keeps track of what he gives and what he gets in return. An annoying quality, to say the least, and I'm sure my wife has your sympathy, but it's made me highly attuned to when and where credit is due.
3
Bill Hunter
Anything that's got Stephan Elliott directing it is going to be interesting, to say the least.
4
James Longstreet
In the case of the armies at Fredericksburg it would have been, to say the least, very hazardous to give counter-attack, the Federal position being about as strong as ours from which we had driven them back.
5
Janet Napolitano
It would be unwise to say the least, irresponsible of us at the TSA, at the Homeland Security Department not to evolve our technology to match the changing threat environment that we inhabit.
6
Chuck Norris
When I got into the film business, my aim was to adopt a positive persona, of a guy who fights against injustice. And it saved me, because my acting was atrocious to say the least!
7
Rhea Perlman
Kids who enter 'adulthood' without any strong attachments to people who know and care about them have a rough road ahead, to say the least.
8
Mekhi Phifer
With my first son I cut his umbilical cord and everything, so I'm a hands-on father, to say the least.
9
Josh Radnor
I think the word 'earnest' kind of has a negative connotation on some level. I think one of the things that's happened is that being cynical is somehow conflated with being sophisticated. I think that's problematic, to say the least.
10
Richard Schiff
I love David Fincher - even though it was just two scenes, I loved the way we worked and could tell by the way he was shooting it that this was going to be an affective movie to say the least.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «TO SAY THE LEAST»

Discover the use of to say the least in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to to say the least and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
At the Water's Edge
“Oh, a man of much delights...you sure do know how to make a man laugh to say the least. I love that.” Eric says laughing a quite laugh. He motions for Robert to follow. As they exit you can hear the Grandfather clock striking out the hour.
Wesley L. Crane, 2012
2
To Say the Least
High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! To Say the Least is an American game show that aired on NBC from October 3, 1977 to April 21, 1978.
Jesse Russell, Ronald Cohn, 2012
3
The Scottish Jurist: Containing Reports of Cases Decided in ...
The learned Judge then proceeds, " Besides, the seventh clause evidently includes, asfallingunder the powers of a quorum, various acts which seem, to say the least,"— a Judge ought to say not the least, but both the most and the least " which ...
‎1832
4
When It's Time to Say Good-Bye
Yes, to say the least, I'd had it! This was a totally unacceptable situation as far as I was concerned! Actually, it should have been a totally unacceptable situation as far as anyone in their right mind was concerned, don't you think? I mean to tell ...
Marti Tote, 2014
5
Annals of the American Pulpit: Unitarian Congregational. 1865
Now, I take it, here is, to say the least, as good an apology for concluding a letter as yours. What do you think ? " Yours always, "S. C. THACIIER." " How would you delight me by informing me of your intention of returning to Cambridge. I should ...
William Buell Sprague, 1865
6
Berkshire October: The Final Mission of an Accidental Spy
“It's been tough, to say the least. At first I had a real hard time handling it. But I've managed to keep up with my spiritual practices: the meditation, tai chi and these daily walks in which I focus on repeating my mantra. And you know that I spend ...
Craig S. Bell, 2010
7
To Say the Least
Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. To Say the Least was an American game show that aired on NBC from October 3, 1977 to April 21, 1978.
Lambert M. Surhone, Miriam T. Timpledon, Susan F. Marseken, 2010
8
Things I Want to Say
It's unnerving to say the least.” “No kidding.” I still felt queasy with the aftereffects of the encounter. “I know he's dead, but there he was—it was too creepy.” “I guess it's like they say—the past always comes back to haunt us.” The idea angered ...
Cindi Myers, 2010
9
Al-Muwatta Of Iman Malik Ibn Ana
20.51 The Sacrificial Animals considered Least Difficult 167 Yahya related to me from Malik from Ja'far ibn Muhammad from his father that 'Ali ibn Abi Talib used to say, "The least difficult thing acceptable as a sacrificial animal is a sheep.
Anas,, 2013
10
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine
As the Premier himself must, according to the " Letter," "of necessity be indifferent, to say the least, to the interests of the Protestant Church," it seems natural to suppose, pursuing the present system of liberality, that the new bishop would be  ...
‎1829

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «TO SAY THE LEAST»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term to say the least is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Fattah: Indictment allegations 'a little bit of a stretch, to say the least'
Last October, U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the Manayunk Bridge Trail project that he helped facilitate. (Bas Slabbers/for ... «Newsworks.org, Jul 15»
2
Facebook For The World: 'PublikFacebook' Experiment Proves …
It was quite a creation while the Facebook profile lasted, to say the least. Initially, Joe Veix created the Facebook profile as an experience to blog about on the ... «The Inquisitr, Jul 15»
3
O-Zone: To say the least...
We all hope the Jags improve greatly but that has yet to be seen. It's nearly pathetic that we become hopeful or optimistic to finish second in the AFC South this ... «Jacksonville Jaguars, Jul 15»
4
Chan-Hom's behavior was erratic, to say the least
Tropical Storm Chan-Hom is well away from Guam, but not before making our heads spin because of its erratic nature. National Weather Service warning ... «KUAM.com, Jul 15»
5
EL James' Twitter Q&A Did Not Go Well To Say The Least
Oh, and at least two more movies are planned. James let loose among questions she did answer that she has written another book and is halfway through yet ... «Huffington Post, Jun 15»
6
Box: Microsoft Partnership Is Peculiar To Say The Least
The Box (NYSE:BOX) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) partnership is a really, really peculiar one. It's interesting to say the least. It's especially interesting in light ... «Seeking Alpha, Jun 15»
7
Milwaukee Brewers: Ugly start to say the least
While a baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint, it's always in a team's best interest to not start a campaign looking pathetic. But pathetic is unfortunately a ... «isportsweb.com, Apr 15»
8
Traffic in Jeddah is nightmarish to say the least
Traffic in Jeddah is nightmarish to say the least. Last updated: Friday, April 10, 2015 12:41 AM. Traffic in Jeddah is nightmarish to say the least. Okaz/Saudi ... «Saudi Gazette, Apr 15»
9
Leeds United: Suspending Thompson came as a shock to say the
It was a shock to say the least to see Steve Thompson suspended and in his time as assistant most people seem to think that he's done a very good job. «Yorkshire Evening Post, Apr 15»
10
Indiana's anti-LGBT law a preview for 2016?
(CNN) Barney Frank, to say the least, knows his way around politics. In a Chicago appearance recently, the retired congressman had the sold-out crowd at the ... «CNN, Mar 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. To say the least [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/to-say-the-least>. Apr 2024 ».
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