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dwarfish

[dwawr-fish]
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adjective
  1. like a dwarf, especially in being abnormally small; diminutive.
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Origin of dwarfish

First recorded in 1555–65; dwarf + -ish1
Related formsdwarf·ish·ly, adverbdwarf·ish·ness, noun

Synonyms

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pygmy, tiny, stunted, runty.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

shortscrubdwarfweeshotdwarfedshrimpbantamdiminutivelittlemeaslymitepeanutsmalltinyundersizeddwarfishhalf-pintpeeweeruntish

Examples from the Web for dwarfish

Historical Examples

  • It was a primrose—a dwarfish thing, but perfect in shape—a baby-wonder.

    At the Back of the North Wind

    George MacDonald

  • At the door they found the dwarfish Grasshopper with Black Bess.

    Rookwood

    William Harrison Ainsworth

  • The vegetation, as might be supposed, is scant, or at least dwarfish.

    The Short-story

    William Patterson Atkinson

  • The oak is left behind, and the pine grows stunted and dwarfish.

    The Rifle Rangers

    Captain Mayne Reid

  • A fine, dwarfish, curled variety, long cultivated in England.

Word Origin and History for dwarfish

adj.

1560s, from dwarf (n.) + -ish. Related: Dwarfishly; dwarfishness.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper