midget

American  

[mij-it] / ˈmɪdʒ ɪt /

noun

1. Older Use: Disparaging and Offensive. an abnormally small person having normal physical proportions.

2. any animal or thing that is very small for its kind.

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adjective

1. very small or of a class below the usual size.

2. being a miniature replica or model.

midget British  

/ ˈmɪdʒɪt /

noun

1. a dwarf whose skeleton and features are of normal proportions

2. 1. something small of its kind

   2. ( as modifier )

      a midget car

3. an age level of 16 to 17 in amateur sport, esp ice hockey

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Sensitive Note

A dwarf is someone with a medical condition that results in stunted growth (58 inches or shorter in height), with a physical form that is disproportionate or not normally developed in some way. The word midget is not a synonym; it is disparaging and offensive and should be avoided. It was formerly used for someone of proportionate form but abnormally small physical stature. The terms dwarf and little person are now preferable in reference to these short-statured people.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• midgetism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of midget

First recorded in 1850–55; midge + -et

Explanation

Midget is an offensive term for someone who is much smaller than average. While it's acceptable today to describe an inanimate object with the adjective midget, it's never okay to use the word for a person. Long ago, people felt free to describe little people as midgets — for example, the actors who played the Munchkins in the 1939 movie "The Wizard of Oz" were routinely described as midgets. Today we'd avoid describing these actors by their physical characteristics, but if we did they'd be called "little people," "dwarfs," "LP," or even "people of short stature." Save midget for midget crabapples or midget submarines.

Example Sentences

Yet, while mice are a favorite model animal for studying glaucoma, they have very few of the midget retinal ganglion cell counterparts.

From Science Daily • Dec. 13, 2023

Bell won it three consecutive times in small open-wheel midget cars from 2017 to 2019 as Larson came up short time and time again.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 1, 2023

Its has about 70 submarines, including Romeo-class vessels of Soviet-era design, and midget submarines.

From Reuters • Sep. 8, 2023

“P.T. Barnum turned midget into a word to describe a human,” said Aubrey Smalls, an actor and filmmaker with dwarfism.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 29, 2023

At noon she would rush home and fix Chester some delicacy for lunch, like a midget fruit salad or an entire vegetable dinner so small you could serve it on a silver dollar.

From "The Cricket in Times Square" by George Selden