less than

1. Not at all or hardly at all. For example, He had a less than favorable view of the matter, or She had a less than adequate grasp of the subject. This expression uses less in the sense of “a smaller quantity, number, or extent than is implied,” a usage dating from about a.d. 1000. The same sense appears in less than no time, a hyperbolic term for a very short time (as in Don't worry, he'll be here in less than no time) that dates from about 1800.

Example Sentences

But less than a year after this filing, the company returned to court last month to declare bankruptcy once again, citing the loss of nearly $257 million between March and June.

From Los Angeles Times

Justin Bieber released the pink-jacketed “Swag II” early Friday morning, less than two months after he dropped its black-jacketed predecessor in mid-July.

From Los Angeles Times

Spending less than an hour during work browsing properties or shopping online is not a sackable offence, a UK judge has ruled.

From BBC

Less than three years after joining the “Post,” Oliphant received the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning for an illustration of Ho Chi Minh carrying the body of a dead Vietnamese man.

From Salon

This is the second tariff increase from Power NI in less than a year.

From BBC