What's the difference between less and lessen?

Less


Definition:

  • (conj.) Unless.
  • (a.) Smaller; not so large or great; not so much; shorter; inferior; as, a less quantity or number; a horse of less size or value; in less time than before.
  • (adv.) Not so much; in a smaller or lower degree; as, less bright or loud; less beautiful.
  • (n.) A smaller portion or quantity.
  • (n.) The inferior, younger, or smaller.
  • (v. t.) To make less; to lessen.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) However, patients with GGBHS were significantly older (P less than .05).
  • (2) The percentage of people with less than 10 TU titers is under 5% after the age of 5 years up to 15 years; from 15 to 60 years there are no subjects with undetectable ASO titer and after this age the percentage is still under 5%.
  • (3) Neuromedin B (C50 6 x 10(-12) M) was 3 times less potent than bombesin-14.
  • (4) The patterns observed were: clusters of granules related to the cell membrane; positive staining localized to portions of the cell membrane, and, less commonly, the whole cell circumference.
  • (5) This suggested that the chemical effects produced by shock waves were either absent or attenuated in the cells, or were inherently less toxic than those of ionizing irradiation.
  • (6) Patients with papillary carcinoma with a good cell-mediated immune response occurred with much lower infiltration of the tumor boundary with lymphocyte whereas the follicular carcinoma less cell-mediated immunity was associated with dense lymphocytic infiltration, suggesting the biological relevance of lymphocytic infiltration may be different for the two histologic variants.
  • (7) In contrast, resting cells of strain CHA750 produced five times less IAA in a buffer (pH 6.0) containing 1 mM-L-tryptophan than did resting cells of the wild-type, illustrating the major contribution of TSO to IAA synthesis under these conditions.
  • (8) This bone could not be degraded by human monocytes in vitro as well as control bone (only 54% of control; P less than 0.003).
  • (9) Arachidic acid was without effect, while linoleic acid and linolenic acid were (on a concentration basis) at least 5-times less active than arachidonic acid.
  • (10) Urinary ANF immunoreactivity was significantly enhanced by candoxatril in both groups (P less than 0.05 and P less than 0.01 in groups 1 and 2, respectively), with a more pronounced effect evident at the higher dose (P less than 0.01).
  • (11) However, dexamethasone was more effective than either prednisone or cortisol (P less than 0.001).
  • (12) With UVB treatment clinical improvement was achieved, and a less pronounced decrease in epidermal LC was noticed.
  • (13) In the bars of Antwerp and the cafes of Bruges, the talk is less of Christmas markets and hot chocolate than of the rising cost of financing a national debt which stands at 100% of annual national income.
  • (14) When perfusion of the affected lung was less than one-third of the total the tumour was found to be unresectable.
  • (15) This clinical improvement was also associated with a decrease of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (p less than 0.001), decrease of C-reactive protein (p less than 0.0001) and with improvement of anaemia (p less than 0.05).
  • (16) However, the groups often paused less and responded faster than individual rats working under identical conditions.
  • (17) By 24 hr, rough endoplasmic reticulum in thecal cells increased from 4.2 to 7% of cell volume, while the amount in granulosa cells increased from less than 3.5% to more than 10%; the quantity remained relatively constant in the theca but declined to prestimulation values in the granulosa layer.
  • (18) Acceptance of less than ideal donors is ill-advised even though rejection of such donors conflicts with the current shortage of organs.
  • (19) Ten out of 12 (83%) tumours which had c-erbB-2 and c-erbA co-amplification had metastasised to axillary lymph nodes (P less than 0.006).
  • (20) Despite of the increasing diagnostic importance of the direct determination of the parathormone which is at first available only in special institutions in these cases methodical problems play a less important part than the still not infrequent appearing misunderstanding of the adequate basic disease.

Lessen


Definition:

  • (a.) To make less; to reduce; to make smaller, or fewer; to diminish; to lower; to degrade; as, to lessen a kingdom, or a population; to lessen speed, rank, fortune.
  • (v. i.) To become less; to shrink; to contract; to decrease; to be diminished; as, the apparent magnitude of objects lessens as we recede from them; his care, or his wealth, lessened.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) The transmission of alcoholism and its effects are thereby lessened for future generations of children of alcoholics.
  • (2) Bacteria can stop or lessen antibodies synthesis process.
  • (3) Behavioral variables, including interreinforcement interval and drug self-administration history, appear to be important determinants of whether or not reinforcement will be demonstrated, particularly among the benzodiazepines; but the range of conditions under which behavioral and pharmacological variables interact to promote or lessen the likelihood of self-administration of these drugs remains to be determined experimentally.
  • (4) "It is in my power to lessen their sentence – it's not excluded that that will happen."
  • (5) Diminished pressor responsiveness was considered to be due to concurrent reduction of central sympathetic vasomotor activity, because sympathetic nerve responses to hypothalamic stimulation were appreciably lessened in tripamide-treated SHR.
  • (6) The introduction of biological valves or of valves with a lessened risk of embolism is highly desirable in such cases.
  • (7) In this paper, these and related facts were summarized and some precautions were suggested to lessen the increase of resistant strains in this country.
  • (8) Recent improvements in surgical techniques and selective embolization have lessened the risks of surgical excision, decreased the blood loss, and diminished the time required for resection.
  • (9) We have previously shown that in the cat, taurine is an osmoprotective molecule that lessens mortality, neurological morbidity, and brain-cell dehydration during chronic hypernatremic dehydration.
  • (10) Rats given Sendai virus concurrently with the FCA, or any time after FCA was injected, did not have a lessened severity of the arthritic reaction, as compared with that in control animals.
  • (11) A decrease in relative risks since diagnosis of the first primary cancer was seen that may partly be attributed to a lessening of the intensity of medical surveillance with time.
  • (12) Incorporation of porosity into the grafts, which is necessary for tissue ingrowth, is expected to lessen this difference.
  • (13) The data strongly suggest that conferring the sick role on the mentally ill does not lessen rejection, but may, in some instances, increase social rejection.
  • (14) In contrast, hydroxyurea treatment was associated with a 1.5-fold to sevenfold increase in F cells and a 2.3- to 27-fold increase in the percentage of Hb F. In the three patients whose response reached a plateau, hydroxyurea treatment was associated with lessened hemolysis, decreased serum bilirubin and lactate dehydrogenase levels, and prolonged 51chromium-labeled RBC survival.
  • (15) O’Malley also called for: The relationship between federal immigration law enforcement and local law enforcement to be significantly lessened.
  • (16) Utilization of outpatient surgical centers helps reduce the cost of health care, lessens the disruption of patients' personal lives, and promotes their recovery through early ambulation and a lower incidence of postoperative nosocomial complications.
  • (17) It also lessened the hypertonus of isolated guinea-pig trachea caused by pilocarpine.
  • (18) The use of tissue allografts lessens patient morbidity and suffering and in many cases spares limbs and lives.
  • (19) Unlike acute combinations, chronic imipramine lessened the rate reducing effect of methadone.
  • (20) The results of a bronchial challenge to Aspergillus species, however, remained positive; these positive results suggest that long-term memory immune mechanisms may play an important role in the pathogenesis of hypersensitivity pneumonitis and lessen the importance of precipitins in establishing a diagnosis.