Scintilla

noun

noun ·3 syllables ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A small spark or flash.

    "If the action of the electrodynamic waves is so violent that, even without artificial electrification of the secondary conductor, scintillæ occur in its spark-gap, the aluminium leaves remain almost without change."

  2. 2
    a sparkling glittering particle wordnet
  3. 3
    A small or trace amount. figuratively

    "a scintilla of hope"

  4. 4
    a tiny or scarcely detectable amount wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
iotashredsmidgesmidgentittlewhit

Antonyms

All antonyms
oodles

Example

More examples

"There is not an iota, not a scintilla, not a hint of any real evidence."

Etymology

Existing in English since the 17th century; borrowed from Latin scintilla (“spark”).

Related phrases

scintilla juris

More for "scintilla"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.