LOW

(SMALL IN AMOUNT) [adjective] -er, -est - small in size, number, value or amount, or of not good qualityTemperatures are very low for the time of year.The big supermarket offers the lowest prices in town.These people are living on relatively low incomes.The government is committed to keeping the inflation rate as low as possible.There is a tremendous need for more low-cost housing.Low-energy light bulbs (= those which use less energy) are expensive to buy but repay the cost in lower electricity charges.I'm on a low-fat diet (= one with very little fat).More people are now drinking low-alcohol lager/beer (= that with very little alcohol) when they go out, so that they don't get drunk.This chocolate is very low in (= does not contain many) calories.The minister has been keeping a low profile (= has not been seen much in public) recently.He said that he deplored television's tendency to be directed towards the lowest common denominator (= things that are of interest or understood by most people in a group).There has been so little rain recently that the reservoirs are low (= do not have much water in them).If you are/run/get low (on something), you have very little of it left.We're running low on milk, can you buy some more?The radio batteries are running low.Low can also mean producing only a small amount of sound, heat or light.They spoke in low voices so I would not hear what they were saying.Turn the oven to a low heat.Soft music was playing and the lights were low.Low can also mean of not good quality, esp. when referring to something that is not as good as it should be.Standards in the recent tests were very low.I have rather a low opinion of him.She has very low self-esteem (= She does not have a very high opinion of herself).In the Church of England, low church means not containing a lot of customary acts and ceremonies, or believing that church services should not contain a lot of customary acts and ceremonies.a low church serviceOur vicar is quite low church.Compare high church at high (ABOVE AVERAGE).A low-key event is one that is quite quiet and without a great show of excitement.The wedding will be a low-key affair, with fewer than thirty people.The low season is the period in the year when the fewest number of people visit a place and when the prices are at their lowest level.Many hotels are closed during low season, from November to March.Compare high season at high (ABOVE AVERAGE).Something that is low-tech does not use the most recent equipment or methods.He prefers to use a low-tech fountain pen to write rather than a word-processor. Compare hi-tech.(specialized) A lowest common denominator is the smallest number that can be exactly divided by all the bottom numbers in a group of fractions.