small
1 of 3adjective
ˈsmȯl 
1
a
: having comparatively little size or slight dimensions
b
: lowercase
2
a
: minor in influence, power, or rank
b
: operating on a limited scale
3
: lacking in strength
a small voice
4
a
: little or close to zero in an objectively measurable aspect (such as quantity)
b
: made up of few or little units
5
a
: of little consequence : trivial
b
: humble, modest
6
: limited in degree
7
a
: mean, petty
b
: reduced to a humiliating position
smallish
ˈsmȯ-lish
adjective smallness
ˈsmȯl-nəs
noun small
2 of 3adverb
1
: in or into small pieces
2
: without force or loudness
speak as small as you will
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare3
: in a small manner
small
3 of 3noun
1
: a part smaller and especially narrower than the remainder
the small of the back
2
a
smalls plural : small-sized products
b
smalls plural, chiefly British : smallclothes
especially : underwear
Synonyms
Adjective
- bantam
- diminutive
- dinky
- dwarfish
- fine
- half-pint
- Lilliputian
- little
- pint-size
- pint-sized
- pocket-size
- pocket-sized
- puny
- pygmy
- shrimpy
- slight
- smallish
- subnormal
- toylike
- undersized
- undersize
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Adjective They live in a small house. a small glass of soda She moved to a smaller town. The toy is small enough to fit in my pocket. This room is a little smaller than that one. The movie was a small success. There are still a few small details we have to deal with. It's only a small mistake. The change had only a small impact on the community. Noun These shirts are all smalls. “What size ice-cream cones do you want?” “We'll take three larges and a small.” See More
Recent Examples on the Web Theo Mackie, The Arizona Republic, 16 Sep. 2022 The nearly 192 individual living spaces would be as small as 250 square feet. Tony Semerad, The Salt Lake Tribune, 16 Sep. 2022 The litmus test: was the bathroom too small to close the door behind her? Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 16 Sep. 2022 The gigs were small, mostly at university venues like the one in Leeds. Sarah Grant, SPIN, 16 Sep. 2022 Some said another school would worsen traffic, the site was too small for the plan, and unprotected commuter rail tracks near the school posed a risk to students. Tiana Woodard, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2022 Few cities in California were as bullish on pot as Lynwood, one of a cluster of small towns in southeast L.A. County that have long struggled with financial woes and municipal corruption. Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2022 His horns are too small, his teeth decidedly non-fanglike and his fuzzy green hair too cute. Emily Mcclanathan, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2022 Many of the initiatives are pilot programs or limited in scope, and their cost is often small compared to the billions of dollars in reserves that large health systems have in investment portfolios. jsonline.com, 15 Sep. 2022 Naseem S. Miller, OrlandoSentinel.com, 13 May 2017 Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 12 May 2022 Bring the other hand to the small of your back with your palm up, or to the back of your neck with the palm down. Amanda Loudin, Outside Online, 16 Dec. 2019 All of these are delivered through a pack surgically implanted in the small of the prisoners’ backs. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 June 2022 In fact, even the big guys are jumping on the small-is-mighty bandwagon. Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 11 June 2022 In the sweet black-and-white photo captured by Chris Jackson, Kate could be seen gently placing her hand on the small of her husband's back. Nicole Briese, PEOPLE.com, 2 June 2022 One thing that works to discourage ants is to hang a small can between the hook on the eaves and the feeder. Calvin Finch, San Antonio Express-News, 27 May 2022 The design of each office was also planned for small-to-mid-sized businesses, as opposed to larger companies or larger projects that could have used the same space. Steve Smith, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2022 The recession buffeted all manner of small-to-mid-sized arts organizations, and the Consort navigated some confusion surrounding its affiliation with the Newberry Library after spinning out. Hannah Edgar, chicagotribune.com, 20 Apr. 2022 See More
Adjective
The sample size is small, at just 49 plate appearances, but the results are eye-catching. Theo Mackie, The Arizona Republic, 16 Sep. 2022 The nearly 192 individual living spaces would be as small as 250 square feet. Tony Semerad, The Salt Lake Tribune, 16 Sep. 2022 The litmus test: was the bathroom too small to close the door behind her? Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 16 Sep. 2022 The gigs were small, mostly at university venues like the one in Leeds. Sarah Grant, SPIN, 16 Sep. 2022 Some said another school would worsen traffic, the site was too small for the plan, and unprotected commuter rail tracks near the school posed a risk to students. Tiana Woodard, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2022 Few cities in California were as bullish on pot as Lynwood, one of a cluster of small towns in southeast L.A. County that have long struggled with financial woes and municipal corruption. Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2022 His horns are too small, his teeth decidedly non-fanglike and his fuzzy green hair too cute. Emily Mcclanathan, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2022 Many of the initiatives are pilot programs or limited in scope, and their cost is often small compared to the billions of dollars in reserves that large health systems have in investment portfolios. jsonline.com, 15 Sep. 2022 Adverb
The duo is starting small, performing their procedures at the outpatient surgery facility Endo-Surgical Center of Florida on North Dean Road. Naseem S. Miller, OrlandoSentinel.com, 13 May 2017 Noun
His hand went to the small of my back, tracing the space just above my tailbone. Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 12 May 2022 Bring the other hand to the small of your back with your palm up, or to the back of your neck with the palm down. Amanda Loudin, Outside Online, 16 Dec. 2019 All of these are delivered through a pack surgically implanted in the small of the prisoners’ backs. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 16 June 2022 In fact, even the big guys are jumping on the small-is-mighty bandwagon. Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 11 June 2022 In the sweet black-and-white photo captured by Chris Jackson, Kate could be seen gently placing her hand on the small of her husband's back. Nicole Briese, PEOPLE.com, 2 June 2022 One thing that works to discourage ants is to hang a small can between the hook on the eaves and the feeder. Calvin Finch, San Antonio Express-News, 27 May 2022 The design of each office was also planned for small-to-mid-sized businesses, as opposed to larger companies or larger projects that could have used the same space. Steve Smith, Hartford Courant, 21 Apr. 2022 The recession buffeted all manner of small-to-mid-sized arts organizations, and the Consort navigated some confusion surrounding its affiliation with the Newberry Library after spinning out. Hannah Edgar, chicagotribune.com, 20 Apr. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English smal, from Old English smæl; akin to Old High German smal small, Greek mēlon small domestic animal
First Known Use
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Adverb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Noun
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing small
Kids Definition
small 1 of 2
adjective
ˈsmȯl
smaller; smallest
1
: little in size
a small house
2
: few in numbers or members
a small crowd
3
: little in amount
a small supply
4
: very young
a small child
5
: not very much
small success
6
: unimportant
There are some small details to work out.
7
: operating on a limited scale
small car dealers
8
: very soft and quiet
a small voice
9
: not generous : mean
10
: made up of units of little worth
small change
11
: humble entry 1 sense 3, modest
She came from a small beginning.
12
: lowered in pride
After fumbling the ball, I felt pretty small.
13
: being letters that are not capitals
small
2 of 2noun
: a part smaller and usually narrower than the rest
the small of the back
small
adjective
1
as in little
of a size that is less than average a small cat who never weighed more than five pounds Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- little
- diminutive
- tiny
- pocket
- fine
- slight
- smallish
- miniature
- dinky
- dwarf
- puny
- sparse
- slender
- miniaturized
- mini
- undersized
- minuscule
- dwarfish
- poor
- bantam
- pygmy
- spare
- toylike
- subnormal
- microscopic
- stunted
- lacking
- pocket-sized
- pint-sized
- pocket-size
- shrimpy
- micro
- pint-size
- undersize
- insufficient
- teeny
- half-pint
- Lilliputian
- toy
- wee
- teensy
- infinitesimal
- bitty
- slim
- weeny
- inadequate
- scarce
- meager
- scrubby
- minim
- microscopical
- runty
- skimpy
- minute
- scant
- inappreciable
- little bitty
- scanty
- pinpoint
- teeny-weeny
- weensy
- capsule
- minikin
- stingy
- teensy-weensy
- wanting
- meagre
- skimp
- deficient
- runtish
- niggardly
- bite-sized
- bite-size
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- large
- big
- sizeable
- substantial
- sizable
- considerable
- great
- largish
- huge
- massive
- oversized
- outsized
- handsome
- enormous
- goodly
- vast
- grand
- gigantic
- giant
- oversize
- outsize
- bulky
- tidy
- whopping
- tremendous
- voluminous
- husky
- hefty
- immense
- mountainous
- humongous
- biggish
- gargantuan
- colossal
- monumental
- mammoth
- prodigious
- generous
- gross
- monstrous
- monolithic
- cavernous
- jumbo
- ample
- stupendous
- appreciable
- abundant
- heroic
- staggering
- healthy
- galactic
- plentiful
- wide
- titanic
- copious
- liberal
- elephantine
- broad
- bountiful
- herculean
- overscaled
- heroical
- boxcar
- overscale
- cyclopean
- whacking
- thick
- hulking
- humungous
- king-sized
- pharaonic
- plenteous
- fat
- king-size
- adequate
- sufficient
- infinite
- enough
- leviathan
- cosmic
- immeasurable
- incalculable
- boundless
- Brobdingnagian
- Bunyanesque
- cosmical
- Himalayan
2
as in off
small in degree your chances of winning the lottery are so small that it's best not to count on it Synonyms & Similar Words
- off
- slim
- tiny
- outside
- slight
- negligible
- marginal
- minimal
- remote
- fragile
- minor
- little
- frail
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- large
- good
- great
- significant
- distinct
- substantial
- significant
- sizable
- considerable
- sizeable
- healthy
- respectable
- largish
- goodly
- tidy
3
as in minor
lacking importance reluctant to bring such a small matter to the boss's attention Synonyms & Similar Words
- little
- minor
- slight
- insignificant
- trivial
- unimportant
- worthless
- inconsiderable
- trifling
- negligible
- incidental
- inconsequential
- petty
- minute
- frivolous
- foolish
- small-fry
- fiddling
- nugatory
- neither here nor there
- obscure
- Mickey Mouse
- anonymous
- small-time
- jerkwater
- unknown
- paltry
- one-horse
- nameless
- nickel-and-dime
- uncelebrated
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- big
- major
- substantial
- important
- significant
- meaningful
- momentous
- weighty
- fatal
- dominant
- prominent
- consequential
- decisive
- principal
- eventful
- material
- impressive
- remarkable
- outstanding
- distinctive
- valuable
- chief
- great
- fateful
- exceptional
- worthy
- overriding
- overbearing
- worthwhile
- unfrivolous
- basic
- distinguished
- prestigious
- famous
- eminent
- fundamental
- key
- essential
- illustrious
- notorious
- overmastering
- renowned
- preeminent
- all-important
4
as in petty
not broad or open in views or opinions townspeople who were helpful to one another but who also could be small and intolerant Synonyms & Similar Words
- little
- petty
- narrow
- parochial
- insular
- provincial
- stubborn
- limited
- picayune
- sectarian
- rigid
- small-minded
- illiberal
- Lilliputian
- narrow-minded
- partial
- partisan
- ironbound
- obstinate
- wrongheaded
- bigoted
- biased
- prejudiced
- set
- discriminatory
- unsophisticated
- discriminating
- opinionated
- intolerant
- stodgy
- obdurate
- reactionary
- inflexible
- unyielding
- dogmatic
- straitlaced
- opinionative
- hidebound
- one-sided
- jaundiced
- stuffy
- brassbound
- old-fashioned
- hick
- straightlaced
- dogmatical
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- open
- liberal
- cosmopolitan
- receptive
- tolerant
- catholic
- objective
- unbiased
- impartial
- unprejudiced
- nonpartisan
- broad-minded
- open-minded
- freethinking
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of small are diminutive, little, miniature, minute, and tiny. While all these words mean "noticeably below average in size," small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.
a relatively small backyard
In some situations, the words diminutive and small are roughly equivalent. However, diminutive implies abnormal smallness.
diminutive bonsai plants
The meanings of little and small largely overlap; however, little is more absolute in implication often carrying the idea of petiteness, pettiness, insignificance, or immaturity.
your pathetic little smile
The words miniature and small can be used in similar contexts, but miniature applies to an exactly proportioned reproduction on a very small scale.
a dollhouse with miniature furnishings
The words minute and small are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, minute implies extreme smallness.
a minute amount of caffeine in the soda
Tiny is an informal equivalent to minute.
tiny cracks formed in the painting