low-fat

low-fat — adjective

1. describes food or drinks whose fat content has been cut to a much smaller amount

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

describes food or drinks whose fat content has been cut to a much smaller amount than the standard version — for instance, low-fat yogurt with roughly 1 % fat instead of 3.5 % in regular full-fat yogurt.

Example

Andrés switched to low-fat yogurt after his doctor warned him about high cholesterol.

attributive: low-fat + yogurt

Tariq read the label on his low-fat yogurt at the shop and found extra sugar added for taste.

Common collocations
  • low-fat yogurt
  • low-fat cheese
  • low-fat milk
  • low-fat diet
  • low-fat dressing
  • low-fat spread
Synonyms
  • reduced-fat

    less strict in meaning; 'reduced-fat' often means at least 25 % less fat than the regular product, while 'low-fat' usually means a fixed low threshold.

  • light / lite

    broader and more marketing-oriented; 'light' can also mean reduced sugar, salt, or calories, not just fat.

Antonyms
  • full-fat

    refers to the regular version with all the original fat content intact.

  • whole

    used specifically for dairy products such as whole milk or whole yogurt.

Grammar Patterns

low-fat + noun (food or drink product)

[noun] + is/are + low-fat

Usage Note

The exact amount of fat that qualifies as 'low-fat' varies by country and product type. Common thresholds are around 3 grams of fat per 100 grams for solid food and 1.5 grams per 100 millilitres for liquids.

Common Mistakes

I bought a low-fat from the dairy aisle.
I bought a low-fat yogurt from the dairy aisle.
low-fat is an adjective, not a noun; it must be followed by the noun it describes.
Low-fat foods are zero calories.
Low-fat foods have fewer calories than full-fat versions, but they still contain calories.
low-fat does not mean calorie-free; the fat is reduced, not all nutrients.

2. milk that has had a portion of its cream taken out, so its fat level is below th

2.adjectiveB1
Definition

milk that has had a portion of its cream taken out, so its fat level is below that of whole milk — usually about 0.5 % to 2 % fat.

Example

Jisoo poured low-fat milk over her cereal instead of the whole-milk kind.

low-fat + milk

Priya's cake recipe says whole milk works best, but low-fat milk is fine if that is all she has.

Common collocations
  • low-fat milk
  • low-fat dairy
  • semi-skimmed (UK equivalent)
Synonyms
  • semi-skimmed

    the common British English term for milk with around 1.5–1.8 % fat, equivalent to low-fat.

  • part-skim

    used mainly in North America for cheeses and milk products from which some cream has been removed.

Antonyms
  • full-cream

    milk that has all its original cream content, usually around 3.5 % fat.

  • whole milk

    the standard North American term for full-cream milk.

Grammar Patterns

low-fat + milk

[milk] + is + low-fat

Usage Note

In the United Kingdom the term 'semi-skimmed' is more common than 'low-fat' for milk. In the United States and Taiwan 'low-fat milk' is the standard label for milk with 1 % or 2 % fat.

Common Mistakes

Low-fat milk has no fat at all.
Low-fat milk still contains some fat
about 1–2 % — while skimmed milk has less than 0.5 % fat.' — low-fat is not the same as fat-free or skimmed.

Word family

  • low in fat
    phraseB1
  • full-fat
    adjectiveB1
  • reduced-fat
    adjectiveB2
  • fat-free
    adjectiveB1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four terms describe products with less fat than a standard version, but they differ in degree and regulation. 'Low-fat' means the product meets a fixed fat threshold (e.g., 3 g per 100 g for solids). 'Fat-free' or 'nonfat' is stricter — less than 0.5 g of fat per serving, often with more additives to improve texture. 'Reduced-fat' is a relative claim: the product has at least 25 % less fat than the regular version, but the absolute amount could still be high (e.g., reduced-fat peanut butter still has plenty of fat). 'Light' or 'lite' is the broadest term — it can mean reduced fat, sugar, salt, or calories, or sometimes just a lighter colour or texture. On a yogurt label, 'low-fat' (1 % fat) is a precise nutritional grade; 'light' might only mean fewer calories without specifying how.

fat-freereduced-fatlight / lite

Etymology

Old Norse (lágr)Old English (fǣtt)English

A compound adjective formed from 'low' (meaning 'small in amount or degree', from Old Norse lágr) and 'fat' (from Old English fǣtt, meaning 'fattened'). The term first appeared in English in the early 20th century as dietary guidelines began recommending reduced fat consumption, and gained widespread use with the rise of packaged 'diet' foods in the 1970s and 1980s.