“smallest” is a form of
small
/smɔːl/ adjective, adverb, noun, verb, proper noun
Forms smaller smallest smalls smalling smalled Smale Smales Smalles
- adjective Not large or big; insignificant; few in number. “A small serving of ice cream.”
- adjective Humiliated or insignificant.
- adjective Having a small penis, muscles, or other important body parts, regardless of overall body size. “Though over six feet tall, the man was very small and ashamed to undress.”
- adjective (figuratively, not comparable) Young, as a child. “Remember when the children were small?”
- adjective (writing, not comparable) Minuscule or lowercase, referring to written or printed letters.
- adjective Evincing little worth or ability; not large-minded; paltry; mean.
- adjective Not prolonged in duration; not extended in time; short. “a small space of time”
- adjective Synonym of little (“of an industry or institution(s) therein: operating on a small scale, unlike larger counterparts”).
- adverb In a small fashion “Don't write very small!”
- adverb In or into small pieces.
- adverb (obsolete) To a small extent.
- adverb (obsolete) In a low tone; softly.
- noun (uncountable, especially clothing, food or drink) One of several common sizes to which an item may be manufactured, smaller than a medium.
- noun (countable, especially clothing, food or drink) An item labelled or denoted as being that size. “Two smalls and a large, please.”
- noun (countable, especially with respect to clothing) One who fits an item of that size.
- noun (countable, rare) Any part of something that is smaller or slimmer than the rest, now usually with anatomical reference to the back. “I got a splitting pain in the small of my back”
- verb (obsolete, transitive) To make little or less.
- verb (intransitive) To become small; to dwindle.
- proper noun A surname.
Synonyms
little microscopic minuscule minute tiny under-endowed wee young lowercase compact fun size fun-sized ickle insignificant lit'l low modest mini petty pint-sized minor small-scale pocket-size pocket-sized humble lowly belittled diminished
Antonyms
big generous large ample exceeding cosmic bodacious broad commodious considerable expansive good-sized
Etymology
From Middle English smal, smale, small, smalle, smel, smæl, from Old English smæl (“narrow, slim; slender; fine; small; quiet”), from Proto-West Germanic *smal, from Proto-Germanic *smalaz (“small”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mal- (“small; little”).
Cognate with Scots smaw (“small; minor”), Yola smaale, small (“small”), North Frisian smaal, smeel, smääl (“narrow”), Saterland Frisian smäl (“narrow”), West Frisian smel (“narrow”), Alemannic German schmaal (“narrow”), Bavarian schmoi (“narrow; slender”), Dutch smal (“narrow; small”), German schmal (“narrow; slender”), Low German small (“narrow; slender, small”), Luxembourgish schmuel (“narrow”), Vilamovian śmoł, šmoł (“narrow”), Yiddish שמאָל (shmol, “narrow”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish smal (“narrow; slim”), Gothic 𐍃𐌼𐌰𐌻𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃 (smalists, “smallest”); also Latin malus (“bad, distressing, nasty; evil, mischievous, wicked; destructive, hurtful, noxious; abusive, hostile, unkind”), Belarusian малы́ (malý, “small”), Bulgarian and Macedonian мал (mal, “small; minor”), Czech and Slovak malý (“small”), Polish mały (“small; little; humble; short”), Russian ма́лый (mályj, “small; short”), Serbo-Croatian ма̑л, mȃl (“small”), Ukrainian мали́й (malýj, “small”).
Inherited from Old English smæl (“small”). Compare Smail. First attested in the 1200s.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Having little size, compared with other things of the same kind; little in quantity or degree; diminutive; not large or extended in dimension; not great; not much; inconsiderable; as, a small man; a small river.
- adjective Being of slight consequence; feeble in influence or importance; unimportant; trivial; insignificant; as, a small fault; a small business.
- adverb In or to small extent, quantity, or degree; little; slightly.
- adverb Not loudly; faintly; timidly. [Obs. or Humorous]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “small”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details