it does mean 'almost', right?
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
(1) As our British friends told us, they do not use "most" to mean "almost."
(2) I think that when we shorten "almost" to "most," we call the "new" word
a
clipped word. For example, "I take a
bus to work." "Bus" is a clipped form of
"omnibus." When you get time, please google "clipped words." I think that you
will find a lot of helpful results.
(3) For Americans, "most" as a short way of saying "almost" is fine. The
Random House Webster's Unabridged Diictionary (second edition) has an excellent article on this matter.
(a) Because of strict copyright laws, I cannot quote the whole note. I think that I
can give two of its examples:
Most everyone around here is related to everyone else.
You can find that plant most anywhere.
(b) The book says that this use of "most" is found in the
speech of educated
Americans
but it "is less common in edited writing." In other words, it might
be a good idea that you
not use it in your written reports at the university.