idiom
used when mentioning the last person or thing of a group, in order to say that they are not less important than the others

not less.... than

no less … than 有两个用法:

一是表示同等性,意思是“与……一样”、“不比……差”(强调两者具有同等性)。如:

He is no less wise than you. 他跟你一样聪明。(两者一样 wise)
A dolphin is no less a clever animal than a dog is. 海豚与狗同样都是聪明的动物。(两者一样 clever)
It was no less a personage than the bishop. 这是与主教同等重要的人物。(同样是personage)
European leaders met through the night for 11 hours with no less a task than saving the euro currency. 欧洲领导人聚在一起,通宵开了11个小时的会议,要完成挽救欧元这一任务。(“挽救欧元”与其他工作一样属于重要任务)

二是表示惊奇,意思是“竟然”。如:

Good heavens! It’s no less a person than the president! 天哪!原来竟是总统啊!
The message came from no less a person than the Prime Minister. 电文竟是首相发来的。

▲比较 no more…than(与……一样不)的用法:
A whale is no more a fish than a horse is.

  1.  马与鲸一样,都不是鱼。
  2.  马不是鱼,鲸也不是鱼
  3.  鲸不是鱼就如同马不是鱼一样。

英语常见问题大词典:

如果我们对 no more… than 结构有了较清楚的了解的话,那么对 no less… than 结构就很容易理解和掌握了。大家知道,no more… than 结构与其说是进行比较,不如说是强调否定:既否定 no more… than的前项,也否定它的后项。no less… than 则与 no more… than 相反,它是用来进行肯定的:既肯定其前项,也肯定其后项。列如:

  1. He is no less guilty than you. 他和你同样有罪
  2. In war no less than peace, food was an important influence. 在战争时期,如同在和平时期一样,粮食具有重要的影响。
  3. A whale is no less a mammal than a horse is. 鲸鱼和马一样也是哺乳动物。
  4. Italian is no less a mother tongue for her than English. 如同英语一样,意大利语也是她的母语。
  5. Our soldiers fought with no less daring than skill. 我们的战士战斗得既英勇又懂战技。
  6. Language is concrete, no less so than speaking. 语言如同言语一样,也是具体的。
Link to original