See Also: Small-capitalization (small cap) stocks(money)
Small-capitalization (small-cap) fund(money)
Small capitalization (small cap) fund(finance)
Small capitalization (small cap) stocks(finance)
Small-cap(money)
small ad(dictionary)
Small cap(finance)
small(2)(dictionary)
small(1)(dictionary)
Eye, small(health)

small(1) (iou)



small adjective, adverb, & noun.

A. adjective.
I.
a. Of relatively little girth or circumference in comparison with length; slender, thin. Now dial. exc. of the waist. OE.
T. Moore Like an hour-glass, exceedingly small in the waist.
b. Of a person etc.: slim, graceful. ME-L16.
Having little breadth or width in proportion to length; narrow. Now rare. OE.
II.
a. Not large; of limited or restricted size, esp. in comparison with others of the same kind. OE.
J. Conrad The broad river..had been swollen..carrying small drift-wood. A. C. Clarke A small man, his head barely reaching the level of Franklin's shoulders. S. Radley A felt hat..a little too small for his large head. G. Vidal A small, airless, icy room in the harem of the winter palace.
b. (Of a child etc.) not fully grown or developed; young; (of a sibling) younger. Later also, (of a family) consisting of young children. ME.
I. Murdoch The brothers..now small children, now growing towards manhood.
c. Of a letter: lower case, of a lesser size than and often different form from a capital letter; spec. (of the initial letter of a word) not capitalized, indicating that the word is a general or less serious variety of the thing denoted. L17.
Times A newspaper..serious, lively, and radical with a small r.
Little in amount, quantity, or number; not great. ME.
Dryden A small but faithful Band Of Worthies. Goldsmith They consider the loss of them as but a small misfortune. T. Hardy Rewarded the old woman as far as her small means afforded.
b. Of low numerical value; spec. (of money) of little size and low value; consisting of coins of low denomination. ME.
R. L. Stevenson Four pounds..in..notes, and the balance in small silver.
Not much; hardly any. LME.
D. H. Lawrence Lettie..paid small attention to my eloquence. C. S. Lewis I could put up with..monotony far more patiently than even the smallest disturbance.
Of time, distance, etc.: short, brief. LME.
Below or less than the usual standard. M16.
III.
Consisting of fine or minute particles, drops, etc.; not coarse. OE.
Of cloth, yarn, a garment, etc.: fine in texture or structure. obsolete exc. dial. OE.
Of little power or strength; spec. (a) (of a sound) low; (b) (of alcohol content) weak; (c) (of the wind) gentle. ME.
R. Broughton 'Thank you,' she says, in a small voice. Aldous Huxley Even the smallest of vins ordinaires are very drinkable.
b. Phonetics. Of a vowel: narrow, close. L16.
IV.
a. Of a person: low in rank or position; of minor or little importance, authority, or influence; common, ordinary. Now rare. ME.
D. M. Mulock A very great lady, and Hilary..felt an exceedingly small person beside her.
b. That is (such) to a small or limited extent, degree, etc. Now rare. E16.
c. Having little land, capital, etc.; dealing, doing business, etc., on a minor or limited scale. M18.
J. B. Priestley Small family businesses, in which the employer is well acquainted with all his workpeople. Daily Telegraph The small investor barred from securing premium rates from a clearing bank. Independent Nicholson has been in small publishing for 20 years.
Of a thing etc.: of little or minor consequence or importance; trifling, trivial, unimportant. ME.
W. A. Wallace 'Well, don't let us split on a small point of detail,' he began.
Not prominent or notable; humble, modest; unpretentious. LME.
Base, low; petty, mean, ungenerous. E19.
Spectator Trickery, not statesmanship; and..small trickery too.
Phrases: a small matter: see MATTER noun. feel small feel mean or humiliated. in a small way unambitiously, on a small scale. in the smallest rare in the least. look small appear mean or humiliated. no small: see NO adjective. small is beautiful: expr. the notion that something small-scale is better than a large-scale equivalent. small profits and quick returns the policy of a cheap shop etc. which relies on low prices and a large turnover. small thanks to: see THANK noun. thankful for small mercies: see THANKFUL 1. the small screen: see SCREEN noun1 7.
b. adverb.
Into small pieces. OE.
Quietly, gently; in a small or low voice. ME.
To a small extent or degree; not much; slightly. LME-M17.
On a small scale, to a small size. M17.
Nautical. Close to the wind. M19.
Phrases: sing small colloq. adopt a humble tone or manner; be less assertive, back down; say nothing.
C. noun.
a. collect. People or animals of small size or stature. Now only with the. ME.
b. A child. E20.
collect. People of inferior rank or ability. ME.
A small quantity or amount; a little piece, a morsel. obsolete exc. Scot. ME.
a. the small, something trifling, petty, or unimportant. ME.
b. the smalls (theatrical), small towns, often with poor theatrical facilities, as theatrical venues. L19.
Little, not much. LME-M17.
The slenderest or narrowest part of something, as the leg or (esp.) the back. LME.
A. Davies A skimpy..vest that only came as far as the small of her back.
In pl. Items of small size; spec. (a) small articles of laundry or clothing, esp. underwear; (b) small (varieties of) coal; (c) relatively lightweight parcels or consignments; (d) small advertisements. M19.
Hist. In pl. = RESPONSION 3. M19.
Phrases: by small and small little by little; gradually, slowly. in small on a small scale; (of a painting etc.) in miniature. the small: see sense C.4a above. the smalls: see sense C.4b above.
Special collocations & comb. (of adjective & adverb): small ad, small advertisement a small simple advertisement in a newspaper, usu. in a separate section for that purpose and inserted by an individual. small-arm adjective using or provided with small arms. small arms portable firearms, as rifles, pistols, light machine-guns, etc. small beer: see BEER noun1 1. small-bore adjective (of a firearm) having a narrow bore, in international and Olympic shooting usu. .22 inch calibre (5.6 mm bore). small-bourgeois = PETIT BOURGEOIS (usu. attrib.). small bower: see BOWER noun3. small CALORIE. small cap, small capital a capital letter of virtually the same size as lower case letters in the same font and designed to harmonize with them. small-cell adjective (Medicine) (of a tumour) composed of small cells, esp. of uncertain origin. small change: see CHANGE noun 3. small circle: see CIRCLE noun. small-claims court a local tribunal in which claims for small amounts can be heard and decided quickly and cheaply without legal representation. small clause Linguistics a clause which contains neither a finite verb nor the infinitive marker 'to', for example him groan in I heard him groan. small-clothes (now rare) breeches; knee-breeches. small coal (a) charcoal; (b) coal of small size. small craft Nautical small boats and fishing vessels collectively. small debt: see DEBT noun. small deer: see DEER noun 1. small end in a piston engine, the end of a connecting rod nearer to the piston. smallest room colloq. the lavatory in a building (cf. small room below). small-for-dates adjective (of a newborn baby) small in size in relation to the time since its conception. small fortune: see FORTUNE noun. small forward Basketball a versatile forward who is effective outside the key as well as near the net. small fruit = soft fruit s.v. SOFT adjective. small fry: see FRY noun1 4. smallgoods Austral. small meat products, as sausages, bacon, etc. small gut(s) the small intestine. smallholder a person who owns or works a smallholding. smallholding (a) a holding smaller than a normal farm; (b) the practice or occupation of working a smallholding. small hours the early hours of the morning after midnight. small intestine: see INTESTINE noun. small MERCY. small-minded adjective of narrow outlook and rigid opinions, lacking vision and generosity. small-mindedly adverb in a small-minded manner. small-mindedness the state of being small-minded. small-mouth (bass) a small-mouthed bass. small-mouthed adjective having a small mouth; small-mouthed bass, a N. American freshwater bass, Micropterus dolomieui, introduced elsewhere as a game-fish. small MUNSTERLANDER. small pastern: see PASTERN 2c. small-pipe(s) a Northumbrian bellows-filled bagpipe. small potatoes: see POTATO noun. small print printed matter in small type, esp. such matter as part of a document or contract containing detailed information or conditions relating to the main text. small reed any of several reedlike grasses constituting the genus Calamagrostis, of damp woods and marshes. small room colloq. a lavatory (cf. smallest room above). small sail Nautical any of various main- and topsails in a vessel. small-scale adjective operating or executed on a small scale; drawn to a small scale; relating to small numbers, of small size or extent. small seraphim: see SERAPHIM 3b. small shot: see SHOT noun1. small slam: see SLAM noun1. small-still (whisky): see STILL noun2 1. small stores Nautical (a) small items for personal use on a sea voyage; (b) US (a shop selling) articles of regulation clothing. small-sword a light tapering thrusting-sword, used esp. (Hist.) for duelling. small-talk noun & verb (a) noun light social conversation; chit-chat; (b) verb intrans. engage in small-talk. small-time noun & adjective (slang) (a) noun the lower ranks of a (usu. theatrical) profession; (b) adjective operating on a small scale, second-rate, unimportant, insignificant. small-timer a small-time operator, an insignificant person. small TORTOISESHELL. small-town adjective of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a small town; unsophisticated, provincial. small-townish adjective = small-town above. small type = small print above. smallwares haberdashery. small wonder: see WONDER noun. small world: expr. surprise etc. at a coincidental or unexpected meeting (esp. in it's a small world). small-yield adjective = low-yield adjective s.v. LOW adjective.