small
(Informal)
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- little, diminutive, mini, miniature, minute, petite, pygmy or pigmy, teeny, teeny-weeny, tiny, undersized, wee
- unimportant, insignificant, minor, negligible, paltry, petty, trifling, trivial
- petty, base, mean, narrow
- modest, humble, unpretentious

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Antonyms: large
Contrasted words: big, great, considerable, sizable, enormous, huge, immense, vast
Related Words: cramped, limited, narrow, two-by-four, puny, undersized, paltry, petty, piddling, trivial

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English Thesaurus: flat, level, smooth, even, horizontal, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. small¹ S1 W1 /smɔːl $ smɒːl/ adjective (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)
[Language: Old English; Origin: smæl]

1. SIZE not large in size or amount:
a small piece of paper
a small car
a small town
a small dark woman
The T-shirt was too small for him.
The sweater comes in three sizes – small, medium, and large.
Only a relatively small number of people were affected.
a small amount of money
A much smaller proportion of women are employed in senior positions.

2. NOT IMPORTANT a small problem, job, mistake etc is not important or does not have a large effect Synonym : minor:
We may have to make a few small changes.
There’s been a small problem.
There’s only a small difference between them.
It was good to feel we had helped in some small way.

3. no small degree/achievement/task etc a large degree, achievement etc:
The success of the project is due in no small measure to the work of Dr Peterson.
That is no small achievement in the circumstances.

4. YOUNG a small child is young:
She has three small children.
I’ve known him since he was a small boy.

5. small business/firm/farmer etc a business that does not involve large amounts of money or does not employ a large number of people:
grants for small businesses

6. LETTER small letters are letters in the form a, b, c etc rather than A, B, C etc Synonym : lower case Antonym : capital

7. conservative with a small 'c'/democrat with a small 'd' etc informal someone who believes in the principles you have mentioned, but does not belong to an organized group or political party

8. VOICE a small voice is quiet and soft:
‘What about me?’ she asked in a small voice.

9. look/feel small to seem or feel stupid, unimportant, or ashamed:
She jumped at any opportunity to make me look small.

10. (it’s a) small world especially spoken used to express surprise when you unexpectedly meet someone you know or find out that someone has an unexpected connection to you:
Did you know David went to school with my brother? It’s a small world, isn’t it?

11. a small fortune a large amount of money
cost/spend/pay a small fortune
It must have cost him a small fortune.

12. small change coins of low value:
I didn’t have any small change for the parking meter.

13. be thankful/grateful for small mercies/favours to be pleased that a bad situation is not even worse:
She wasn’t too badly hurt, so we should be thankful for small mercies.

14. the small hours (also the wee small hours British English) the early morning hours, between about one and four o'clock
in/into the small hours
He finally fell exhausted into bed in the small hours.
The party continued into the wee small hours.

15. small arms guns that you hold with one or both hands when firing them

16. something is small potatoes (also something is small beer British English) informal used to say that someone or something is not important, especially when compared to other people or things:
Even with £10,000 to invest, you are still small beer for most investment managers.
—small adverb:
He writes so small I can’t read it.
—smallness noun [uncountable]

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. small² noun

1. the small of your back the lower part of your back where it curves

2. smalls [plural] British English old-fashioned informal underwear

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

small
adj.
VERBS be, feel, look, seem | become, get, grow The gap seemed to be getting smaller. The kite grew smaller and smaller and finally disappeared altogether.
remain, stay Choose plants that will stay quite small.
ADV. extremely, really, terribly, very | a bit, fairly, pretty, quite, rather, relatively
PREP. for My coat was rather small for Bob.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

flat on one level, without any holes or raised areas, and not sloping or curving:
a flat roof
a flat screen
Before you lay the tiles, make sure that the ground is completely flat.
level not sloping in any direction, so that every part is at the same height:
Is the top of this picture level?
After four hours coming down the mountain, I was glad to be back on level ground.
smooth without any holes or raised areas – used especially when saying how something feels when you touch it:
her lovely smooth skin
I ran my hand across the animal’s smooth fur.
even without any holes or raised areas:
Apply the paint to an even surface.
Be careful – the path is not very even here.
horizontal going straight across and not sloping:
a horizontal line
Raise both arms to a horizontal position.
small
The flat was too small for the three of them.
big/spacious
It was a big flat with eight or nine rooms.
cramped/poky (=too small and not comfortable)
She spends most days shut up in a poky flat looking after her disabled Mum.
a one-bedroom/two-bedroom etc flat
She lived in a one-bedroom flat in Clapham.
a one-room/two-room etc flat
Their home is a humble two-room flat.
a ground-floor/first-floor/second-floor etc flat
We’re moving into a first-floor flat.
a basement flat (=a flat that is below ground level)
They lived in a basement flat in South London.
a studio flat (=with one main room)
I might just be able to afford a tiny studio flat.
high-rise flats (=flats in a very tall building)
Many high-rise flats were built in the 1970s.
a rented flat
He returned to his rented flat in Cheltenham.
a luxury flat
Laura shares a luxury flat with her sister Chloe.
a self-contained flat (=a flat with its own kitchen and bathroom)
We rented a self-contained flat in the city centre.
a furnished/unfurnished flat (=a rented flat that does or does not have furniture)
She found a job and a furnished flat.
a holiday flat
The building has been converted into three holiday flats.
a block of flats (=a large building divided into separate flats)
At the time, I lived in a block of flats in St John’s Wood.
live in a flat
Terry lived in a flat on the second floor.
buy a flat
I had planned to buy a flat with Geraldine.
rent a flat
Renting a flat can be very expensive in this part of town.
move into a flat
They move into their new flat next week.
own a flat
The couple own their own flat in Peebles.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

short not long:
I lived in Tokyo for a short time.
Smokers have a shorter life expectancy than non-smokers.
brief especially written lasting only for a short time. Brief is more formal than short, and is used especially in written English:
The President will make a brief visit to Seattle today.
He coached Hingis for a brief period in the 1990s.
quick [only before noun] taking a short time to do something:
I had a quick look at the map.
He had a quick shower and then went out.
short-lived lasting only for a short time – used especially when someone wishes that a good situation had been able to last for longer:
short-lived success
The ceasefire was short-lived.
a short-lived romance
short-lived optimism about the economy
fleeting lasting only for an extremely short time – used especially when someone wishes that something had been able to last for longer:
a fleeting visit
a fleeting smile
She caught a fleeting glimpse of him.
a fleeting moment of happiness
a fleeting thought
momentary lasting for a very short time – used especially about feelings or pauses:
There was a momentary pause in the conversation.
The momentary panic ended when he found his two-year-old son waiting happily outside the store.
passing [only before noun] lasting only for a short time – used especially when people are only interested in something or mention something for a short time:
passing fashions
He made only a passing reference to war.
It’s just a passing phase (=it will end soon).
ephemeral formal lasting only for a short time, and ending quickly like everything else in this world:
Beauty is ephemeral.
the ephemeral nature of our existence
His wealth proved to be ephemeral.
not very tall quite short. This phrase sounds more gentle than saying that someone is short:
She wasn’t very tall – maybe about 1.60 m.
small short and with a small body:
My mother was a small woman.
The girl was quite small for her age (=smaller than other girls of the same age).
petite used about a woman who is attractively short and thin:
She was a petite woman with blonde hair.
stocky used about a boy or man who is short, heavy, and strong:
Harry was stocky and middle-aged.
dumpy short and fat:
a dumpy girl with red hair
diminutive formal literary very short or small – used especially in descriptions in novels:
a diminutive figure dressed in black
stubby stubby fingers or toes are short and thick:
the baby’s stubby little fingers
film especially British English, movie especially American English a series of images that tell a story and are shown in a cinema or on television:
What’s your favourite movie?
It won the award for best foreign film.
a made-for-TV movie
motion picture formal (also picture) a film – used especially by people who make films or by critics:
a major Hollywood motion picture
Tell us about your latest picture.
blockbuster informal a very successful film:
Steven Spielberg’s latest Hollywood blockbuster
flick informal a film – a very informal use:
an action flick
documentary a film that gives detailed information and facts about a particular subject:
a documentary on the rain forest
feature film a film made to be shown in cinemas:
The book was later made into a full-length feature film starring Sean Penn.
comedy a film intended to make people laugh:
Monroe appeared in a number of comedies.
romantic comedy (also romcom British English informal) a film about two people who are in love, which is intended to make the people who watch it feel happy:
‘Notting Hill’ is a romantic comedy starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant.
thriller an exciting film, especially about murder or serious crimes:
‘The Birds’ is a classic Hitchcock thriller.
film noir a film that shows strong feelings of fear or evil and whose characters are often immoral, or these films in general:
‘The Big Sleep’ is a classic Hollywood film noir.
action film/movie a film that has lots of fighting, explosions etc:
Stallone’s latest action movie
horror film/movie a frightening film about ghosts, murders etc:
She loves watching old horror movies.
western a film with cowboys in it:
John Wayne is famous for making westerns.
science fiction film/movie (also sci-fi film/movie informal) a film about imaginary events in the future or in outer space:
‘2001’ is probably the most famous sci-fi movie ever made.
gangster film/movie a film about violent criminals
silent film/movie an old film without any sound:
The 1920s were the golden age of silent movies.
an independent film/movie a film made by a small film company
animated film/movie/cartoon a film with characters that are drawn or made using a computer:
One of his first animated films was ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’.
anime /ˈænɪmeɪ, -mə/ a type of Japanese animated film, which often has a science fiction story:
Miyazaki’s anime film ‘Spirited Away’ became an international success.
an anime character
CGI the use of computers to create characters and images in a film:
The film uses CGI.
Disney’s latest CGI movie
trailer a series of short scenes from a film or programme, shown in order to advertise it in a cinema, on television etc:
We had to sit through all the trailers.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

short someone who is short is not as tall as most people:
He was a short fat man.
not very tall quite short. This phrase sounds more gentle than saying that someone is short:
She wasn’t very tall – maybe about 1.60 m.
small short and with a small body:
My mother was a small woman.
The girl was quite small for her age (=smaller than other girls of the same age).
petite used about a woman who is attractively short and thin:
She was a petite woman with blonde hair.
stocky used about a boy or man who is short, heavy, and strong:
Harry was stocky and middle-aged.
dumpy short and fat:
a dumpy girl with red hair
diminutive formal literary very short or small – used especially in descriptions in novels:
a diminutive figure dressed in black
stubby stubby fingers or toes are short and thick:
the baby’s stubby little fingers

[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 ▲

small
smɔ:l
See: big frog in a small pond

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲