Small

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /smɔl/

Definitions

1. Not large in size, amount, or degree; limited in scale or extent
2. Of limited physical dimensions or quantity compared to others; involving a minor or modest extent; describing something of less than average magnitude
3. Having a lesser measure in space, number, or importance; characterized by minimal size or scope; indicating something comparatively slight or modest

Etymology: Old English "smæl" meant "narrow, slim" before it meant "little," and that narrow sense survives in its relatives. German "schmal" and Dutch "smal" still mean narrow, and Swedish "smal" means narrow or slim. The English word once leaned the same way: a small window or a slender waist was the original picture, and size in general came later. The word also reaches back to a root that appears in Latin "malus," meaning "bad" or "wicked." Few speakers would link the two today, since "small" sounds gentle and "malus" sounds hostile, yet both trace to a shared Proto-Indo-European base, "(s)mal-," meaning "small; little." The Latin sense shifted toward harm, while the Germanic branch kept the sense of smallness. Old English "smæl" also carried the sense of "quiet" and "fine," which shows how a single adjective could cover thin, quiet, and minor all at once. Its Slavic cousins, such as Russian "mályj" and Polish "mały," still mean small.

Synonyms: little, tiny, miniature, petite, compact

Antonyms: large, big, huge, enormous, massive