dwarf
Americannoun
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dwarves,
plural
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dwarfs
plural
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a person of abnormally small physical stature resulting from a medical or genetic condition, especially a person with achondroplasia or some other disease that produces disproportion or deformation of features and limbs.
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an animal or plant much smaller than the average of its kind or species.
- Synonyms:
- runt
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(in folklore) a being in the form of a small, often misshapen man, usually having magic powers.
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Astronomy. dwarf star.
adjective
verb (used with object)
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dwarfs,
present (3rd person singular)
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dwarfed,
past participle, past
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dwarfing
present participle
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to cause to appear or seem small in size, extent, character, etc., as by being much larger or better.
He dwarfed all his rivals in athletic ability.
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to make dwarf or dwarfish; prevent the due development of.
verb (used without object)
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dwarfs,
present (3rd person singular)
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dwarfed,
past participle, past
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dwarfing
present participle
noun
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an abnormally undersized person, esp one with a large head and short arms and legs Compare midget
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an animal or plant much below the average height for the species
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( as modifier )
a dwarf tree
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(in folklore) a small ugly manlike creature, often possessing magical powers
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astronomy short for dwarf star
verb
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to become or cause to become comparatively small in size, importance, etc
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(tr) to stunt the growth of
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An abnormally small person, often having limbs and features atypically proportioned or formed.
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An atypically small animal or plant.
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A dwarf star or dwarf galaxy.
Sensitive Note
Is it OK to say dwarf? See midget.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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dwarfishnessnoun
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dwarfnessnoun
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dwarfishadjective
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dwarflikeadjective
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undwarfedadjective
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dwarfishlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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dwarfsimple
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dwarfssimple
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have dwarfedperfect
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has dwarfedperfect
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am dwarfingprogressive
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are dwarfingprogressive
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is dwarfingprogressive
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have been dwarfingperfect progressive
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has been dwarfingperfect progressive
Past
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dwarfedsimple
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had dwarfedperfect
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was dwarfingprogressive
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were dwarfingprogressive
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had been dwarfingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dwarf
First recorded before 900; Middle English dwerf, Old English dweorh; replacing Middle English dwerg, Old English dweorg; cognate with Old High German twerg, Old Norse dvergr
Explanation
An unusually short, small person is sometimes called a dwarf. There are many different genetic medical conditions that can cause a person to be classified as a little person or a dwarf. Some people are offended by dwarf, preferring to be called "little people," "LP," or "people of short stature." The general condition that leads to delayed growth is called "dwarfism." The noun dwarf is also used for an unusually small animal or plant, or as a verb meaning "make something seem very small," as when a new apartment building dwarfs the surrounding houses. The Old English root dweorg referred to a tiny creature from German mythology.
Vocabulary lists containing dwarf
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Twenty years on, the big six are signing deals which dwarf that.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Even a few flowery sentences in “Kitchen Confidential” about lessons learned working at The Dreadnaught dwarf “Tony” in comparison.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
What remains at the center is an extremely hot stellar core called a white dwarf.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 12, 2026
Another possibility is that a dwarf galaxy is still in the process of merging with the larger system.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
Two dwarf warriors clung frantically to Gurgi, who swung them about as if they were rabbits.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
During this phase, their outer layers churn and gradually drift into space, while the dense cores left behind shrink into white dwarfs.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
Astronomers have spent decades carefully cataloging stars near the Sun, yet white dwarfs in systems like these remain difficult to detect.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026
"If we put more targeted effort into observing red dwarfs, perhaps we will find more surprises like this," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Near the heart of downtown lies the church’s spiritual headquarters, the 377,000-square-foot cathedral-like Flag Building, which dwarfs surrounding properties and draws Scientologists from around the world.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
Around her neck, as golden and shining as her hair, glittered the necklace of the Brisings, made for Freya by dwarfs far underground.
From "Norse Mythology" by Neil Gaiman
It dwarves the revenues of a team from the other top five leagues.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
Named Erebor, after the mountain where the dwarves stored their treasure and which the dragon took over in J.R.R Tolkien’s “The Hobbit,” that new bank won a preliminary regulatory approval Wednesday.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2025
Its £169,950 asking price dwarves the £200 her parents paid for it.
From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2023
A precious metal known as mithril, which just so happens to be in the mines of the dwarves.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2022
Gimli the dwarf alone wore openly a short shirt of steel-rings, for dwarves make light of burdens; and in his belt was a broad-bladed axe.
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
But what they found during their searches in 2025 dwarfed their earlier discoveries.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
Many people have dwarfed my success a hundred- or thousandfold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Returns for investors in U.S. stocks have dwarfed those for equities trading in the rest of the world over the past 15 years.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 28, 2026
The words seem today, dwarfed as they are by the Brobdingnagian architectural setting, a bit smaller than they once did.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
It dwarfed his small, thin frame and he had to carry it with both hands, bending backward to lift it off the floor.
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
The Saudis spend some $80 billion a year on defense—far more than the Israelis and dwarfing the Iranians—but imported hardware is no substitute for combat experience and the will to fight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
The old computer-software index showed prices rising at a record 17% yearly pace, dwarfing any prior increase.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 22, 2026
There were more than 323 million visits to America’s national parks in 2025, dwarfing attendance — 135 million — at professional football, baseball, basketball and hockey games combined.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026
Middleton has spent more than $16 million of his own money on the race so far, dwarfing any of his previous political spending many times over.
From Salon ● May 23, 2026
The United States now has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, dwarfing the rates of nearly every developed country, even surpassing those in highly repressive regimes like Russia, China, and Iran.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
