minimal to say

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "minimal to say" is not correct in English.
Did you mean "to say the least"? You can use "to say the least" when you want to express that something is an understatement or that there is more to the situation than what has been stated. Example: "The project was challenging, to say the least, but we managed to complete it on time."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

Oh the joy of having a shower after three days, and putting on some clean clothes!! Bush hygiene is minimal, to say the least.

The Guardian - Travel

The feedback you get from your pit crew is minimal, to say the least, and sometimes reacts to proceedings much more slowly than you do; it would also be nice if it included more praise (such as when you lead a race despite being at the helm of a Force India) rather than censuring you for marginal corner-cutting escapades.

The Guardian - Tech

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

54 human-written examples

In France, Germany, Italy or Spain I'll do just that – people really do seem to appreciate you making the – albeit minimal – effort to say "hello", "goodbye", "please" and "thank you".

The Guardian - Travel

Of course, minimal journalistic standards, to say nothing of a sense of humor, would have saved them the embarrassment.

Huffington Post

Typically a breakpoint for susceptibility will be set based on the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the antibacterial, that is to say the minimal concentration required to inhibit growth in strains considered sensitive.

Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews

The scene she envisages for her death adheres to familiar tropes no less than do the wedding photos on her Web site: she wants to be at home, among loved ones, with minimal pain and the chance to say goodbye.

The New Yorker

The fact that a clique with vertex set cardinality (k+1) is a minimal k-core allows us to say that algorithms performing clique enumeration were the first ones to attack a subset of the problem we present in this paper.

The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience

"It's so easy, so minimal to use," he said.

The New York Times - Tech

The weak compactness of C allows us to use Zorn's Lemma to obtain a minimal element (say) K in F. To prove the theorem we use the following lemma from [3] (see also [[4], Lemma 1]).

Fixed Point Theory and Applications

The risk to taxpayers is minimal, analysts say, given higher insurance fees that will be charged to recipients of the refinanced loans.

The New York Times

"The bankers we did business with in the past have eliminated purchases or scaled back to minimal amounts," said Jason Berger, the managing partner of AllShows.com, one of the largest ticket brokers in New York.

The New York Times - Sports

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Avoid using the phrase "minimal to say" in formal writing. Instead, use the correct idiomatic expression "to say the least" or other alternatives such as "at the very least" for clear and grammatically sound communication.

Common error

Do not confuse the ungrammatical phrase "minimal to say" with the correct idiom "to say the least". "To say the least" is used to indicate an understatement, whereas "minimal to say" is not a recognized or grammatically correct expression in English.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "minimal to say" is grammatically incorrect. As noted by Ludwig AI, it's not a recognized expression. The intended function is likely to express an understatement, similar to the correct idiom "to say the least".

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

50%

Science

50%

Formal & Business

0%

Less common in

Academia

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "minimal to say" is not grammatically correct in English. Ludwig AI identifies it as an incorrect expression. While the intention might be to express an understatement, similar to the idiom "to say the least", it's crucial to use the correct phrasing for clear communication. Instead of "minimal to say", opt for alternatives like "to say the least", "at the very least", or "to put it mildly". These options ensure grammatical correctness and effective communication in both formal and informal contexts.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

to say the least

Corrects the grammatical error in the original phrase, providing a standard idiomatic expression.

to say the bare minimum

Specifies that only the absolute essential information or action is being considered.

to put it mildly

Indicates an understatement, similar to "to say the least" but with a slightly different tone.

at the very least

Emphasizes a lower bound or minimum requirement, shifting the focus slightly.

if nothing else

Highlights a minimum expectation or benefit.

at a minimum

Focuses on the smallest acceptable level or quantity.

to the smallest extent

Emphasizes the limited degree or impact of something.

to a negligible degree

Highlights that something is so small it can be ignored.

in the slightest degree

Indicates a very small or negligible amount.

if only just

Indicates a minimal or barely sufficient condition.

FAQs

What does "to say the least" mean, and how is it different from "minimal to say"?

"To say the least" is an idiom used to indicate that something is an understatement. The phrase "minimal to say" is not a correct or recognized expression in English. Instead, use "to say the least".

Are there alternatives to the phrase "to say the least"?

Yes, alternatives include "at the very least", "to put it mildly", or "if nothing else", depending on the specific context.

Is "minimal to say" ever considered correct in certain contexts?

No, "minimal to say" is not considered correct in any standard context of English. It is advisable to avoid this phrase in both formal and informal writing.

How can I remember the correct phrase instead of saying "minimal to say"?

Remember that the correct idiom is "to say the least", which emphasizes an understatement. Think of it as implying there is much more that could be said, but you are choosing to state the minimum.