minor
[adjective]
Synonyms: small, inconsequential, insignificant, lesser, petty, slight, trivial, unimportant

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Antonyms: major
Contrasted words: meaningful, significant, chief, foremost, leading, principal
Related Words: dependent, inferior, piddling, trifling, junior, lower, average, fair, indifferent, mediocre, medium, middling, second-rate, undistinguished, unnoticeable, trivial, unimportant

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English Thesaurus: child, kid, little boy/little girl, teenager, adolescent, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. mi‧nor¹ S2 W2 AC /ˈmaɪnə $ -ər/ adjective
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Latin; Origin: 'smaller']

1. small and not very important or serious, especially when compared with other things Antonym : major:
We have made some minor changes to the program.
a relatively minor error
a minor road
They played only a minor role in local government.
minor injury/illness/operation etc (=one that is not very serious or dangerous)
He escaped with only minor injuries.

2. based on a particular type of musical scale:
Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 in D minor
a minor key

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. minor² noun [countable]

1. law someone who is below the age at which they become legally responsible for their actions:
This film contains material unsuitable for minors.

2. American English the second main subject that you study at university for your degree Antonym : major:
I’m taking history as my minor.

3. the minors the Minor Leagues

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

III. minor³ verb
minor in something phrasal verb
American English to study a second main subject as part of your university degree Antonym : major:
Sid majored in sociology and minored in political science.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

minor
adj.
VERBS be, seem
ADV. extremely, very This is a very minor operation and there is very little risk involved.
comparatively, fairly, quite, relatively That's a relatively minor matter. We can leave it till later.
apparently, seemingly

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

child someone who is not yet an adult. You don’t usually use child to talk about babies or teenagers:
Many children are scared of the dark.
He’s just a child.
kid informal a child. Kid is the usual word to use in everyday spoken English:
We left the kids in the car.
little boy/little girl a young male or female child:
I lived there when I was a little girl.
Little boys love dinosaurs.
teenager someone between the ages of 13 and 19:
There’s not much for teenagers to do around here.
adolescent a young person who is developing into an adult – used especially when talking about the problems these people have:
He changed from a cheerful child to a confused adolescent.
youth especially disapproving a teenage boy – especially one who is violent and commits crimes:
He was attacked by a gang of youths.
a youth court
youngster a child or young person – used especially by old people:
You youngsters have got your whole life ahead of you.
He’s a bright youngster with a good sense of humour.
minor law someone who is not yet legally an adult:
It is illegal to sell alcohol to a minor.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

cut to divide something into two or more pieces, especially using a knife or scissors:
Do you want me to cut the cake?
He cut off the lower branches.
snip to quickly cut something, especially using scissors:
I snipped the label off.
The hairdresser snipped away at her hair.
slit to make a long narrow cut through something, especially using a knife:
He slit the envelope open with a penknife.
She slit through the plastic covering.
slash to cut something quickly and violently with a knife, making a long thin cut:
Someone had slashed the tyres on his car.
He tried to slash his wrists.
saw to cut wood, using a saw (=a tool with a row of sharp points):
Saw the wood to the correct length.
chop to cut wood, vegetables, or meat into pieces:
Bill was outside chopping up firewood with an axe.
They chopped down the old tree.
finely chopped onion
slice to cut bread, meat, or vegetables into thin pieces:
I’ll slice the cucumber.
Slice the bread thinly.
dice to cut vegetables or meat into small square pieces:
First dice the apple into cubes.
grate to cut cheese or a hard vegetable by rubbing it against a special tool:
Grate the cheese and sprinkle it over the vegetables.
peel to cut the outside part off something such as a potato or apple:
I peeled the potatoes and put them in a saucepan.
carve to cut thin pieces from a large piece of meat:
Uncle Ray carved the turkey.
mow to cut the grass in a garden, park etc:
A gardener was mowing the lawn.
trim (also clip) to cut a small amount off something, especially to make it look neater:
He was trimming his beard.
Trim the excess fat off the meat.
make cuts
The country needs to make cuts in the carbon dioxide it produces.
announce cuts
A major engineering company has announced big job cuts.
take/accept cuts (=agree to have something reduced)
Some employees were forced to take pay cuts.
tax cuts
The President announced tax cuts.
pay/wage cuts
Millions of workers face pay cuts.
job/staff cuts
There have been falling sales and job cuts at the newspaper.
spending cuts
His proposals could involve spending cuts of up to £12 billion.
price cuts
The company announced big price cuts on all its computers.
defence cuts
Further proposals for defence cuts were drawn up.
deep/severe cuts (=big reductions)
Deep cuts were made in research spending.
drastic/sharp cuts (=big and sudden reductions)
He resigned over drastic cuts in the education budget.
have a cut on something
He had a cut on his forehead.
get a cut (on something)
I fell and got a bad cut on my head.
small/slight
It’s only a small cut.
minor
Two passengers had to be treated for minor cuts.
superficial (=not deep)
I’m fine - just a few superficial cuts.
bad/nasty (=wide or deep and bleeding a lot)
The cut looked quite bad.
How did you get that nasty cut?
deep
She fell and got a deep cut on her leg.
cuts and bruises (=cuts and dark marks on the skin)
He escaped the crash with just a few cuts and bruises.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

small not large in size, amount, or effect:
a small boat
small businesses
a small amount of money
small changes
little [usually before noun] small – used about objects, places, and living things. Used especially with other adjectives to show how you feel about someone or something:
It’s a very pretty little town.
The poor little dog has hurt its leg.
The cake was decorated with little flowers.
low used about prices, rents, levels, or standards:
People on low incomes are finding it difficult to pay fuel bills.
The crime rate in the area is relatively low.
slight [usually before noun] small and not very important or not very noticeable:
a slight problem
There’s been a slight improvement in his health.
a slight increase in sales
minor small and not important or not serious:
minor injuries
We’ve made some minor changes to the program.
compact small – used about places, buildings etc in which space is used effectively, or about phones, cameras, cars etc which are designed to be much smaller than usual:
The apartments are very compact.
a compact camera
It is a pleasant and compact city.
poky especially British English used about a room, house etc that is too small:
a poky bedroom
a poky flat
cramped used about a space, room, or vehicle that is too small because people do not have enough room to move around:
They all lived together in a cramped apartment.
The car feels cramped with four adults in it.
tiny very small – used about objects, numbers, or amounts:
a tiny island
Dairy foods provide your body with a tiny amount of vitamin D.
teeny informal very small - used for emphasis:
I'll just have a teeny bit of cream.
There's just one teeny little problem.
a teeny little house
minute extremely small and extremely difficult to see or notice:
They found minute traces of poison in his body.
The differences are minute.
minute creatures
miniature a miniature camera, watch, railway etc is made in a very small size. A miniature horse, dog etc is bred to be a very small size:
The spy used a miniature camera.
the fashion for miniature pets
microscopic extremely small and impossible to see without special equipment:
microscopic organisms
microscopic particles of dust
minuscule /ˈmɪnəskjuːl, ˈmɪnɪskjuːl/ extremely small in a surprising way:
She was wearing a minuscule bikini.
The threat from terrorism is minuscule compared to other risks in our lives.
itty-bitty/itsy-bitsy [only before noun] American English informal very small:
An itty-bitty little bug crawled across his forehead.
We stayed at some itty-bitty hotel in a back street.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

unimportant not important:
The exact details are unimportant.
Girls' education was seen as unimportant.
of no/little importance not important, or not very important. These phrases sound a little more formal than unimportant:
If you're capable of doing the job, your age is of no importance.
It's of little importance whether or not this story is true.
minor small and not very likely to have an important effect - used especially about changes, problems, injuries, damage, or differences:
I've made a few minor changes.
The driver suffered minor injuries.
These are just minor problems.
trivial very unimportant and not worth worrying about or spending time on:
They had a disagreement about some trivial matter.
She tends to get upset about trivial things.
insignificant very small and unimportant, especially when compared to other things:
Her own problems seemed insignficant.
The amount of carbon they produce is relatively insignificant.
negligible extremely small and not important - used especially about effects, amounts, differences, or risks:
So far, the program has had a negligible effect.
The difference in price is negligible.
secondary not as important as something else:
These issues are of secondary importance.
For many women, a career is secondary to being mother.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲