Small
adj, adv, name, noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Definitions
- 1 One of several common sizes to which an item may be manufactured, smaller than a medium. especially, noun-from-verb, uncountable
- 2 a garment size for a small person wordnet
- 3 An item labelled or denoted as being that size. countable, especially, noun-from-verb
"Two smalls and a large, please."
- 4 the slender part of the back wordnet
- 5 One who fits an item of that size. countable, especially, noun-from-verb
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- 6 Any part of something that is smaller or slimmer than the rest, now usually with anatomical reference to the back. countable, noun-from-verb, rare
"I got a splitting pain in the small of my back"
- 1 To make little or less. noun-from-verb, obsolete, transitive
- 2 To become small; to dwindle. intransitive, noun-from-verb
"And smalled till she was nought at all."
- 1 Not large or big; insignificant; few in number.
"A small serving of ice cream."
- 2 Not large or big; insignificant; few in number.; Humiliated or insignificant.
"The bullies had succeeded in making him feel small."
- 3 Not large or big; insignificant; few in number.; Having a small penis, muscles, or other important body parts, regardless of overall body size.
"(of genitals)"
- 4 Young, as a child. figuratively, not-comparable
"Remember when the children were small?"
- 5 Minuscule or lowercase, referring to written or printed letters. not-comparable
""I've got catholic tastes. Catholic with a small "c", of course.""
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- 6 Evincing little worth or ability; not large-minded; paltry; mean.
"A true delineation of the smallest man is capable of interesting the greatest man."
- 7 Not prolonged in duration; not extended in time; short.
"a small space of time"
- 8 Synonym of little (“of an industry or institution(s) therein: operating on a small scale, unlike larger counterparts”).
"small science"
- 9 Slender, gracefully slim. archaic
- 10 That is small (the manufactured size). especially
"I'll have a small coffee, thanks."
- 1 made to seem smaller or less (especially in worth) wordnet
- 2 limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent wordnet
- 3 relatively moderate, limited, or small wordnet
- 4 (of a voice) faint wordnet
- 5 lowercase wordnet
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- 6 not large but sufficient in size or amount wordnet
- 7 slight or limited; especially in degree or intensity or scope wordnet
- 8 (of children and animals) young, immature wordnet
- 9 have fine or very small constituent particles wordnet
- 10 low or inferior in station or quality wordnet
- 1 In a small fashion
"Don't write very small!"
- 2 In or into small pieces.
"That's going to go in there. We've got some chives small chopped as well."
- 3 To a small extent. obsolete
"It small avails my mood."
- 4 In a low tone; softly. obsolete
"That's all one: you shall play it in a mask, and / you may speak as small as you will."
- 1 on a small scale wordnet
- 1 A surname.
"“People have biases towards species that are glamorous,” said Dr. Ernie Small, author of the study and taxonomist for Agriculture Canada."
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"My shoes are too small. I need new ones."
Etymology
From Middle English smal, from Old English smæl (“small, narrow, slender”), from Proto-Germanic *smalaz (“small”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mal-, *(s)mel- (“small, mean, malicious”). Cognate with Scots smal; sma (“small”); West Frisian smel (“narrow”); Dutch smal (“narrow”); German schmal (“narrow, small”); Low German small (“narrow”); Danish, Norwegian, Swedish smal (“narrow; thin; slender”); Latin malus (“bad”); Russian ма́лый (mályj, “small”).
Inherited from Old English smæl (“small”). Compare Smail. First attested in the 1200s.
Related phrases
More for "small"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.