Etymology

last but not least

Today it means: An expression to start the last item of a list, emphasising that while it is listed last, it is just as important as the rest of the items. Full definition →

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The story

Rhetoric: A possible/common pattern to arrange a speech or essay suggests putting your strongest and thus most important argument favoring your own opinion first and conclude with the weakest, thus least important argument.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.