low-fat

The compound adjective "low-fat" is a modern, transparent formation from two native English roots. "Low," with its core meaning of "not high," extends metaphorically to indicate a small quantity or degree. "Fat" retains its original sense of the oily substance found in animal tissues and some plants. The compound's logic is entirely literal, directly describing food products formulated to contain a reduced amount of this specific nutrient. Its formation follows the productive English pattern of combining an adjective with a noun (as in "high-speed," "deep-sea") to create a new descriptive term, reflecting 20th-century dietary and health-conscious trends.

Structure: low (small in amount) + fat (a natural oily substance) - low: From Old English hlāw, hlǣw ("low, not high"), of Germanic origin. In this compound, it functions as an adjective meaning "small in amount or degree." - fat: From Old English fǣtt ("fat, fatted"), of Germanic origin. In this compound, it functions as a noun denoting the substance being described.