microscopic

[ mahy-kruh-skop-ik ]
See synonyms for microscopic on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. so small as to be invisible or indistinct without the use of the microscope: microscopic organisms.: Compare macroscopic.

  2. very small; tiny.

  1. of, relating to, or involving a microscope: microscopic investigation.

  2. very detailed; meticulous: a microscopic view of society.

  3. suggestive of the precise use of the microscope; minute: microscopic exactness.

Origin of microscopic

1
First recorded in 1670–80; microscope + -ic
  • Also mi·cro·scop·i·cal .

Other words from microscopic

  • mi·cro·scop·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • non·mi·cro·scop·ic, adjective
  • non·mi·cro·scop·i·cal, adjective
  • non·mi·cro·scop·i·cal·ly, adverb
  • un·mi·cro·scop·ic, adjective
  • un·mi·cro·scop·i·cal·ly, adverb

Words Nearby microscopic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use microscopic in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for microscopic

microscopic

less commonly microscopical

/ (ˌmaɪkrəˈskɒpɪk) /


adjective
  1. not large enough to be seen with the naked eye but visible under a microscope: Compare macroscopic

  2. very small; minute

  1. of, concerned with, or using a microscope

  2. characterized by or done with great attention to detail

Derived forms of microscopic

  • microscopically, 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