English - Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /smɔːl/
• Rhymes: -ɔːl
• (US) IPA^(key): /smɔl/
• (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /smɑl/

English - 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”); Danish, Norwegian, Swedish små (“small”); Latin malus (“bad”); Russian ма́лый (mályj, “small”).

English - Adjective

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)

1. Not large or big; insignificant; few in numbers or size.

   A small serving of ice cream.

   A small group.

   He made us all feel small.

2. (figuratively) Young, as a child.

   Remember when the children were small?

3. (writing, incomparable) Minuscule or lowercase, referring to written letters.
4. Envincing little worth or ability; not large-minded; paltry; mean.
   • Carlyle

     A true delineation of the smallest man is capable of interesting the greatest man.

5. Not prolonged in duration; not extended in time; short.

   a small space of time

Synonyms

• (not large or big): little, microscopic, minuscule, minute, tiny; see also Wikisaurus:tiny
• (young, as a child): little, wee (Scottish), young
• (of written letters): lowercase, minuscule

Antonyms

• See also Wikisaurus:large
• (not large or big): capital, big, generous (said of an amount of something given), large
• (young, as a child): adult, grown-up, old
• (of written letters): big, capital, majuscule, uppercase

Derived terms

Translations

English - Adverb

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)

1. In a small fashion.
   • c. 1593, William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act I, scene 2, line 49:

     That's all one: you shall play it in a mask, and / you may speak as small as you will.

2. In or into small pieces.
   • 2009, Ingrid Hoffman, CBS Early Morning for September 28, 2009 (transcription)

     That's going to go in there. We've got some chives small chopped as well.

3. (obsolete) To a small extent.
   • (Can we date this quote?) William Shakespeare, Sonnets, "Lucrece", line 1273

     It small avails my mood.

Derived terms

• writ small

English - Noun

small (plural smalls)

1. Any part of something that is smaller or slimmer than the rest, now usually with anatomical reference to the back.
2. (UK, in the plural) Underclothes.

Derived terms

• small of the back

English - Verb

small (third-person singular simple present smalls, present participle smalling, simple past and past participle smalled)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To make little or less.
2. (intransitive) To become small; to dwindle.
   • Thomas Hardy

     And smalled till she was nought at all.

English - Anagrams

• malls

Low German - Etymology

From Old Saxon smal, from Proto-Germanic *smalaz. Cognate to German schmal, Dutch smal, English small.

Low German - Adjective

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallst)

1. narrow
2. small, slender

Declension

Swedish - Verb

small

1. past tense of smälla.

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