L'AST, a. [See Late and Let.]

1. That comes after all the others; the latest; applied to time; as, the last hour of the day; the last day of the year.
2. That follows all the others; that is behind all the others, in place; hindmost; as, this was the last man that entered the church.
3. Beyond which there is no more. Here, last of Britons, let your names be read. – Pope.
4. Next before the present; as, the last week; the last year.
5. Utmost. Their last endeavors bend, / T' outshine each other. – Dryden. It is an object of the last importance. – Ellicott.
6. Lowest; meanest. Antilochus / Takes the last prize. – Pope. At last, at the last, at the end; in the conclusion. Gad, a troop shall overcome him; but he shalt overcome at the last. Gen. xlix. To the last, to the end; till the conclusion. And blunder on in business to the last. – Pope. In the phrases, “you are the last man I should consult,” “this is the last place in which I should expect to find you,” the word last implies improbability; this is the most improbable place, and therefore I should resort to it last.

1. The last time; the time before the present. I saw him last at New York.
2. In conclusion; finally. Pleased with his idol, he commends, admires, / Adores; and last, the thing adored desires. – Dryden.

A load; hence, a certain weight or measure. A last of codfish, white herrings, meal, and ashes, is twelve barrels; a last of corn is ten quarters or eighty bushels; of gunpowder, twenty-four barrels; of red herrings, twenty cades; of hides, twelve dozen; of leather, twenty dickers; of pith and tar, fourteen barrels; of wool, twelve sacks; of flax or feathers, 1700 lbs. – Encyc.

A mold or form of the human foot, made of wood, on which shoes are formed. The cobbler is not to go beyond his last. – L'Estrange.

1. To continue in time; to endure; to remain in existence. Our government can not last long unless administered honest men.
2. To continue unimpaired; not to decay or perish. Select for winter the best apples to last. This color will last.
3. To hold out; to continue unconsumed. The captain knew he had not water on board to last a week.

1. of Last, to endure, contracted from lasteth.
   
   
   [Obs.] Chaucer.
2. Being after all the others, similarly classed or considered, in time, place, or order of succession; following all the rest; final; hindmost; farthest; as, the last year of a century; the last man in a line of soldiers; the last page in a book; his last chance.
   
   

   Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. Neh. viii. 18.

   Fairest of stars, last in the train of night. Milton.

3. At a time or on an occasion which is the latest of all those spoken of or which have occurred; the last time; as, I saw him last in New York.
4. To continue in time; to endure; to remain in existence.
   
   

   [I] proffered me to be slave in all that she me would ordain while my life lasted. Testament of Love.

5. A wooden block shaped like the human foot, on which boots and shoes are formed.
   
   

   The cobbler is not to go beyond his last. L'Estrange.

   Darning last, a smooth, hard body, often egg-shaped, put into a stocking to preserve its shape in darning.

6. To shape with a last; to fasten or fit to a last; to place smoothly on a last; as, to last a boot.
7. A load] a heavy burden; hence, a certain weight or measure, generally estimated at 4,000 lbs., but varying for different articles and in different countries. In England, a last of codfish, white herrings, meal, or ashes, is twelve barrels; a last of corn, ten quarters, or eighty bushels, in some parts of England, twenty-one quarters; of gunpowder, twenty-four barrels, each containing 100 lbs; of red herrings, twenty cades, or 20,000; of hides, twelve dozen; of leather, twenty dickers; of pitch and tar, fourteen barrels; of wool, twelve sacks; of flax or feathers, 1,700 lbs.
8. Next before the present; as, I saw him last week.
9. In conclusion; finally.
   
   

   Pleased with his idol, he commends, admires,
   Adores; and, last, the thing adored desires. Dryden.

10. To endure use, or continue in existence, without impairment or exhaustion; as, this cloth lasts better than that; the fuel will last through the winter.
11. The burden of a ship; a cargo.
12. Supreme; highest in degree; utmost.
    
    

    Contending for principles of the last importance. R. Hall.

13. At a time next preceding the present time.
    
    

    How long is't now since last yourself and I
    Were in a mask ? Shak.

14. Lowest in rank or degree; as, the last prize.
    
    
    Pope.
15. Farthest of all from a given quality, character, or condition; most unlikely; having least fitness; as, he is the last person to be accused of theft.
    
    

    At last, at the end of a certain period; after delay. "The duke of Savoy felt that the time had at last arrived." Motley. -- At the last. [Prob. fr. AS. on lste behind, following behind, fr. lst race, track, footstep. See Last mold of the foot.] At the end; in the conclusion. [Obs.] "Gad, a troop shall overcome him; but he shall overcome at the last." Gen. xlix. 19. -- Last heir, the person to whom lands escheat for want of an heir. [Eng.] Abbott. -- On one's last legs, at, or near, the end of one's resources; hence, on the verge of failure or ruin, especially in a financial sense. [Colloq.] -- To breathe one's last, to die. -- To the last, to the end; till the conclusion.

    And blunder on in business to the last. Pope.

    Syn. -- At Last, At Length. These phrases both denote that some delayed end or result has been reached. At length implies that a long period was spent in so doing; as, after a voyage of more than three months, we at Length arrived safe. At last commonly implies that something has occurred (as interruptions, disappointments, etc.) which leads us to emphasize the idea of having reached the end; as, in spite of every obstacle, we have at last arrived.