infinitesimal

[ in-fin-i-tes-uh-muh l ]

/ ˌɪn fɪn ɪˈtɛs ə məl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR infinitesimal ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

indefinitely or exceedingly small; minute: infinitesimal vessels in the circulatory system.

immeasurably small; less than an assignable quantity: to an infinitesimal degree.

of, relating to, or involving infinitesimals.

noun

an infinitesimal quantity.

Mathematics. a variable having zero as a limit.

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Lincolnesque

without interest or significance; dull; insipid.

like or characteristic of Abraham Lincoln.

very high or tall; lofty.

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Words nearby infinitesimal

infinite distance, infinite integral, infinite product, infinite regress, infinite series, infinitesimal, infinitesimal calculus, infinitival, infinitive, infinitive clause, infinitive marker

Origin of infinitesimal

1645–55; < New Latin infīnītēsim(us), equivalent to Latin infīnīt(us) infinite + -ēsimus suffix of ordinal numerals + -al¹

OTHER WORDS FROM infinitesimal

in·fin·i·tes·i·mal·i·ty, in·fin·i·tes·i·mal·ness, nounin·fin·i·tes·i·mal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for infinitesimal

But of course, the percentage of Americans who know that is infinitesimal.
The Five Biggest Lies About Obamacare|Michael Tomasky|August 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"The difference between clicking and not clicking is often infinitesimal, and too much wasn't clicking," he recalls.
New York’s Greatest Show Or How They Did Not Screw Up ‘Guys and Dolls’|Ross Wetzsteon|April 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The territory in dispute is grand in the imaginings of history and infinitesimal in geography.
Barack Obama’s Cairo Speech, and His Israel Problem|Marty Peretz|February 25, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Quantum theory explains the small stuff, where matter and energy divide into infinitesimal particles.
This Week’s Hot Reads: June 5, 2012|Nicholas Mancusi, Jimmy So|June 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST

But with so little time before actual voting begins, the margin for error is infinitesimal.
Don't Do It, Chris!|Matt Latimer|September 30, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The time of my waiting must have been infinitesimal, yet I seemed to wait some little while.
Phroso|Anthony Hope
Infinitesimal grubs, newly hatched from butterfly eggs and barely six inches long, furnished them with tidbits.
Nightmare Planet|Murray Leinster
As though God could trouble about her infinitesimal affairs!
A Pasteboard Crown|Clara Morris
What an infinitesimal proportion of us understand even our own country!
Lippincott's Magazine, Vol. 22, September, 1878|Various
Now she saw that they were infinitesimal, and the knowledge soothed her.
By the Light of the Soul|Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

British Dictionary definitions for infinitesimal

infinitesimal

/ (ˌɪnfɪnɪˈtɛsɪməl) /

adjective

infinitely or immeasurably small

maths of, relating to, or involving a small change in the value of a variable that approaches zero as a limit

noun

maths an infinitesimal quantity

Derived forms of infinitesimal

infinitesimally, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012