From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishlastlast1 /lɑːst $ læst/ ●●● S1 W1 determiner, adjective 1 BEFOREmost recent or nearest to the present time → next(12) I hadn’t seen him since the last meeting.last night/week/year etc Did you see the game on TV last night? The law was passed last August. Interest in golf has grown rapidly in the last ten years. Things have changed since the last time (=the most recent occasion) you were here.2 LASThappening or existing at the end, with no others after OPP first I didn’t read the last chapter of the book. The next meeting will be held in the last week in June.the last person/thing etc to do something Anna was the last person to see him alive.last but one/two etc (=last except for one other, two others etc) on the last but one day of his trialsecond/next to last (=last except for one other) the second to last paragraph3 REMAIN/BE LEFTremaining after all others have gone, been used etc Can I have the last piece of cake?every last (=used to emphasize that you mean all of something) All the money was gone; every last penny of it.4 → the last minute/moment5 → the last person/thing6 → be the last straw7 → last thing (at night)8 → on your last legs9 → on its last legs10 → be the last word in something → last resort at resort1(2), → with your last/dying breath at breath(9), → last hurrah, → have the last laugh at laugh2(6), → the last/final word at word1(15)THESAURUSthe one before this onelast most recent or nearest to the present timeHis last film was much better.It rained all day last Saturday.The last time I saw her was two years ago.previous [only before noun] before this one, or before the one that you are talking aboutSee the diagram in the previous chapter.His previous records had all been jazz records.How much were you earning in your previous job?former [only before noun] formal existing or having a particular position in the past, but not nowthe former Soviet Unionthe former US presidentInterest rates are unlikely to return to their former level.the former Chief Executiveold [only before noun] used about a person or thing that existed in the past, but has been replaced by a newer onean old boyfriendThe old model was much slower.the one that comes at the endlast [only before noun] happening or existing at the end, with no others afterWhat time does the last train leave?Our house is the last one on the right.final [only before noun] last in a series of actions, events, parts of a story etcIt’s the final game of the championship tomorrow.the final scene of the filmclosing [only before noun] used about the last part of a long period of time, or of an event, book etc that has been exciting or interestingthe closing years of the twentieth centuryBarnes scored the winning goal in the closing minutes of the game.concluding [only before noun] used about the last part of a piece of writing, a speech, or an organized event, that ends it in a definite waythe concluding section of the reportthe judge’s concluding remarkspenultimate /peˈnʌltəmət, pə-/ [only before noun] the one before the last onethe penultimate chapter
Examples from the Corpus
last night/week/year etc• Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., died in the final days of the GOP-led Congress last year.• The 2000 Census said the country had 281 million people last year.• The export of motor cars in the past nine months is 90 percent. higher than last year.• McDougal was convicted of Whitewater-related fraud charges last year, along with his former wife and the governor of Arkansas.• He was only told of the burglary last night as he visited his sister, Anne Marie, in Hoddesdon, Herts.• But for the last week or two he's had to use a bigger bag.• We will restore last year's training cuts which caused so much damage to training for young people and the unemployed.• The 73-year-old Republican standard-bearer took time out of his busy campaign schedule last week to search for those roots.the last person/thing etc to do something• He should have been the last person to be killed.• As Nina said, the last thing to do ever was to touch lacquer directly.• What's the last thing to go through a fly's mind when it hits the front of your car?• Which made her the last person to know how to handle this evening's adventure.• And the last person to know the full history would be Jenny herself.• I would be the last person to say that it was all your fault.• And you were the last person to see her.• Kris Johnson will be the last person to wear Marques' No. 54.every last• Saw how he grasped every last detail of it and held that knowledge tight in his memory.• What with the onions and the heat, every last drop of moisture's gone from me.• She is adept at eating every last morsel she is served.• And we hit every last one of them.• The only sure way was to pick out all the eggs by hand, every last one of them.• Her arms crept around his waist and every last scrap of fight and anger drained fluidly from her body.• Erasing every last trace of the Project. lastlast2 ●●● S1 W1 adverb 1 BEFOREmost recently before now → next When I last saw her, she was working in New York.GrammarChoosing the right tenseLast is used with the simple past: I last saw her in 2008. ✗Don’t say: I have last seen her in 2008.Word order• Last usually comes before a main verb: I last went to London in June.• Last comes after ‘be’ when it is the main verb: I was last in London in June.• Last comes after the first auxiliary: When did you last hear from Tara?2 LASTafter everything or everyone else OPP first Who is speaking last? Add the flour last.last of all (=used when giving a final point or piece of information) Last of all, I’d like to thank everyone for coming.3 → last but not leastExamples from the Corpus
last• Connect the red wires first and the black ones last.• I'm saving that chocolate for last.• I do all our dishes, and leave the dog's dish till last.• I was told I'll be speaking last.• The teacher called out my name last.• Josie came out of the school almost last.• Oakland and the New York Mets last did it in 1973.• Isetan shares were last offered at 1,620 yen, down 1. 8 percent from its closing price yesterday.• Yet there was a change in his lad since he had last seen him.• When I saw her last, she was pregnant.• Despite experiencing tiredness and illness at times, she can't remember when she last took time off work.last of all• Tragically, it could well be the last of all.• And last of all he knew she believed herself capable of murder.• She totters forward, in she goes Head first, and last of all her toes.• Last of all, I'd like to say that everyone has done a wonderful job.• Sarah, left alone, had the dubious distinction of being the last of all the Titfords in Frome.• But last of all, who governs Parliament?lastlast3 ●●● S1 W1 noun, pronoun 1 → the last2 → at (long) last3 → the day/week/year etc before last4 → the last of something5 → somebody hasn’t heard the last of somebody/something6 → somebody will never hear the last of something7 → the last I heard8 → to the lastExamples from the Corpus
last• She had been last noticed at the wheel of the car when the Josephs arrived there.• Each one was hurrying to avoid being last.• At a press conference, Wiltshire Police revealed that Mrs Campbell had last been seen alive a week ago.• It's good to see their interests being looked after at long last.• Only the leaders were mounted, and even that would not last long, although there were horse-boys behind with replacements.• But I figured the jeans wouldn't last long.• Mr Evan's rages were noisy while they lasted but they didn't last long.• It was last to start and at this rate, will probably be last to finish.lastlast4 ●●● S1 W2 verb 1 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition, transitive]LAST FOR A PERIOD OF TIME to continue for a particular length of timelast for/until/through etc The hot weather lasted for the whole month of June.last an hour/ten minutes etc Each lesson lasts an hour. The ceasefire didn’t last long.► see thesaurus at continue2 [intransitive, transitive]CONTINUE/NOT STOP to continue to exist, be effective, or remain in good condition for a long time This good weather won’t last.last (somebody) two days/three weeks etc A good coat will last you ten years. Cut flowers will last longer if you put flower food in the water.3 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] (also last out (something) British English)SURVIVE to manage to remain in the same situation, even when this is difficult They won’t be able to last much longer without fresh supplies. If you go into the job with that attitude, you won’t last long. She feared she might not be able to last out the afternoon in court without fainting.4 [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition]ENOUGH to be enough for someone for a period of time SYN dolast (somebody) for/until/to etc The batteries should last for 20 hours playing time. We only had $50 to last us the rest of the month.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
last• Phase 1 started in July 1980 and lasted 3 years, during which 2.5 million households were visited.• It's not certain how long the ceasefire will last.• Mexico achieved a remarkable 8% annual growth rate, but the new prosperity did not last.• Ours was a happy marriage, but I always feared it wouldn't last.• Of course it would not last.• Cheap saucepans can't really be expected to last.• rainstorms lasting all night long• He knew they only had enough food to last another three days.• Her operation lasted around three hours.• Helpers approaching have sometimes been bitten or attacked wildly in the delirium that follows and which may last as long as twelve tormented hours.• Each consultation can last between 10 minutes and half an hour.• Most batteries last for about 8 hours.• The attack usually lasts for several minutes but can go on much longer.• I wanted the weekend to last forever.• Analysts are confident the downturn in share prices will not last long.• Some wine-makers will tell you that a cask lasts only for four years.• It's amazing how long this car has lasted, really.• His breathing was getting worse and he was not expected to last the night.• It's amazing that she's managed to last this long, really.• Within himself, however, it felt as though his stay had lasted three or four hours at most.• Bedworth's trial, expected to last three weeks, continues.• I still have $100, but that won't last until the end of the vacation.• It's the worst cold I've ever had, but luckily it didn't last very long.• It's hard to say how much longer the astronauts will last without fresh supplies.• $400 won't last you long in Chicago.• A can of baby formula costing $6.00 will last you three to four days.last for/until/through etc• There are also professionally-applied textured coatings which are sprayed on, and should last for 10 years or more.• Like any other book, its popularity will last for a moment, but it will remain on the shelves.• The first period lasts until age 7 or 8.• Something that will last for future generations.• As the project will last for so many years, temporary improvements are constantly being made to the estate.• I had embarked on a life-time career that I expected would last for the following forty years.lastlast5 noun [countable] DCCTZa piece of wood or metal shaped like a human foot, used by someone who makes and repairs shoesExamples from the Corpus
last• It's good to see their interests being looked after at long last.• It was last to start and at this rate, will probably be last to finish.Origin last4 Old English læstan “to last, follow” last5 Old English læste, from last “footmark” 