Cambridge Dictionaries online Cambridge Dictionaries online

The most popular online dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English

  

lest

conjunction
 
 
/lest/ literary

Definition

in order to prevent any possibility that something will happen: They were afraid to complain about the noise lest they annoyed the neighbours.Connecting words which express a condition
(Definition of lest conjunction from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

“lest” in other dictionaries

Word of the Day

be under a cloud

to not be trusted or popular because people think you have done something bad

Word of the Day

Blog

Read our blog about how the English language behaves.

Learn More

New Words

Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.

Learn More