What does "to do precious little to illuminate" mean?
Here's the sentence: "Something that over a half century of debate has done precious little to illuminate .". I don't get the grammar. Actually I know what "to do little to illuminate" mean; it's the "precious" part I don't get. Is it an adjective for "little"?

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Answer

"Precious little" to me is an idiom, a phrase, or a colocation. It is a informal way of saying "almost nothing." It expresses annoyance. It means "I can't say 'absolutely nothing,' but it is very little."

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