Dictionary Definition
last adj
1 immediately past; "last Thursday"; "the last
chapter we read" [syn: last(a)]
2 coming after all others in time or space or
degree or being the only one remaining; "the last time I saw
Paris"; "the last day of the month"; "had the last word"; "waited
until the last minute"; "he raised his voice in a last supreme
call"; "the last game of the season"; "down to his last nickel"
[ant: intermediate,
first]
3 occurring at or forming an end or termination;
"his concluding words came as a surprise"; "the final chapter";
"the last days of the dinosaurs"; "terminal leave" [syn: concluding, final, terminal]
4 conclusive in a process or progression; "the
final answer"; "a last resort"; "the net result" [syn: final, net]
5 most unlikely or unsuitable; "the last person
we would have suspected"; "the last man they would have chosen for
the job"
6 occurring at the time of death; "his last
words"; "the last rites"
7 not to be altered or undone; "the judge's
decision is final"; "the arbiter will have the last say" [syn:
final]
8 lowest in rank or importance; "last prize"; "in
last place" [syn: last-place,
lowest]
9 highest in extent or degree; "to the last
measure of human endurance"; "whether they were accomplices in the
last degree or a lesser one was...to be determined individually"
[syn: utmost]
10 in accord with the most fashionable ideas or
style; "wears only the latest style"; "the last thing in swimwear";
"knows the newest dances"; "cutting-edge technology"; "a with-it
boutique" [syn: latest,
newest, up-to-date,
cutting-edge,
with-it]
Noun
1 the temporal end; the concluding time; "the
stopping point of each round was signaled by a bell"; "the market
was up at the finish"; "they were playing better at the close of
the season" [syn: stopping
point, finale,
finis, finish, conclusion, close]
2 the last or lowest in an ordering or series;
"he was the last to leave"; "he finished an inglorious last"
3 a person's dying act; the last thing a person
can do; "he breathed his last"
4 the time at which life ends; continuing until
dead; "she stayed until his death"; "a struggle to the last" [syn:
death]
5 a unit of weight equal to 4,000 pounds
6 a unit of capacity for grain equal to 80
bushels
7 the concluding parts of an event or occurrence;
"the end was exciting"; "I had to miss the last of the movie" [syn:
end, final
stage]
8 holding device shaped like a human foot that is
used to fashion or repair shoes [syn: shoemaker's
last, cobbler's
last] adv
1 more recently than any other time; "I saw him
last in London" [syn: most
recently]
Verb
1 persist or be long; in time; "The bad weather
lasted for three days" [syn: endure]
2 continue to live; endure or last; "We went
without water and food for 3 days"; "These superstitions survive in
the backwaters of America"; "The racecar driver lived through
several very serious accidents" [syn: survive, live, live on, go, endure, hold up, hold out]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Extensive Definition
A last is the form used in shoemaking to shape a
shoe in the rough form of a
human foot. It is used by
cordwainers or
shoemakers in the manufacture or repair of shoes. Lasts come in
pairs and the material used to make them can vary from wood (which expands and contracts
based on humidity, generally not a desired characteristic) to
high-density
polyethylene. This shape is designed to fit the foot, the toe
style and is used in production to add the sole and heel after
stretching the leather or fabric around the top.
Production
Almost all footwear is made on lasts, a form that reflects the shape and shoe style. There are many types of lasts which reflect the type of footwear and feet they are designed for. Traditionally lasts are made from wood, which expands and contracts when wet materials are laid on it during shoe manufacture. This can be of concern as the steps in shoemaking involve the use of water. Modern materials, which do not change shape when wet, can allow a more accurate fit. The material used to make the last must be firm enough to hold small tacks (called lasting tacks) and hold parts of the shoe in place during forming and manufacture, but soft enough to be removed before the sole is added.Today, high fashion shoe
designers who utilize centuries old methods of last making, shoe
design and construction still utilize wood shoe lasts to form their
expensive,custom footwear.
Different types of footwear
require lasts with different characteristics. Open-toe sandal
style will use a last that allows the toes to spread out, while a
boot last is designed to
hug the instep for a closer fit. In mass manufacturing, the design
of lasts is often completed on a computer system like Lectra and
includes the top pattern.
Custom lasts
Podiatrists use custom molded and other specialty lasts to produce shoes to meet the needs of their patients. These lasts are made from various modern materials that can withstand the constant tacking pinning and wet environment. Many custom footwear makers make lasts for their customers, shaped to maintain a form best suited to the customer's feet.last in German:
Leisten
last in Esperanto:
Ŝuformilo
last in Luxembourgish:
Leescht
last in Dutch: Leest
(gereedschap)
last in Finnish:
Lesti
last in Swedish:
Läst
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
Z, abide, advance, aforegoing, after, aftermost, apodosis, at last, at length,
at long last, at the end, at the last, be spared, behind, bide, bottommost, boundary, carry on, carry
through, cast, catastrophe, caudal, ceasing, cessation, cheat death,
closing, coda, collateral, coming, completing, completive, completory, concluding, conclusion, conclusive, conclusively, consummation, consummative, contingent, continue, continue to be,
continue to exist, crack of doom, crowning, culminating, culmination, curtain, curtains, death, decease, decisive, defeat time, definitive, defy time,
denouement, departing, destination, destiny, determinative, die, doom, dwell, effect, elapse, end, end point, ending, endmost, endure, envoi, epilogue, eschatology, eventual, eventually, exist, expiration, expire, extend, extreme, farewell, farthest, farthest out,
fate, final, final solution, final
twitch, final words, finale, finality, finalizing, finally, finis, finish, finishing, flit, flow, flow on, fly, foregoing, form, fulfilling, furthest, glide, go by, go on, goal, hang on, hindmost, hold, hold on, hold out, in
conclusion, in fine, in the rear, indirect, intaglio, izzard, keep, keep alive, keep at, keep at
it, keep driving, keep going, keep on, keep trying, keep up,
lag, lapse, last breath, last gasp,
last long, last out, last things, last trumpet, last words,
lastly, latest, latter, latter end, leaving, limiting, live, live on, live through,
maintain, matrix, mint, model, mold, most recent, mould, negative, newest, not accept compromise,
omega, once for all,
outermost,
outward-bound, parting,
pass, pass by, pattern, payoff, perdure, perennate, period, peroration, persevere, persist, polar, preceding, press on, prevail, proceed, punch, quietus, rearmost, remain, remotest, resolution, resting place,
roll on, run, run its
course, run on, run out, seal, secondary, shoe last, slide, slip, stamp, stand, stand up, stay, stay on, stoppage, stopping place,
subsist, support life,
survive, sustain, swan song, tail, tarry, template, term, terminal, terminating, termination, terminative, terminus, tide over, ultimate, ultimately, utmost, uttermost, valedictory, wear, wear well, windup