miniature

[ min-ee-uh-cher, -choor, min-uh-cher ]
See synonyms for miniature on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a representation or image of something on a small or reduced scale.

  2. a greatly reduced or abridged form or copy.

  1. a very small painting, especially a portrait, on ivory, vellum, or the like.

  2. the art of executing such a painting.

  3. an illumination in an illuminated manuscript or book.

adjective
  1. being, on, or represented on a small scale; reduced.

Idioms about miniature

  1. in miniature, in a reduced size; on a small scale: The zoo exhibition offered a jungle in miniature.

Origin of miniature

1
1580–90; <Italian miniatura miniature painting <Medieval Latin miniātūra, equivalent to miniāt(us) (see miniate) + -ūra-ure; sense development perhaps influenced by Latin base min- (see mini-, minor)

Other words for miniature

Other words from miniature

  • su·per·min·i·a·ture, adjective

Words Nearby miniature

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

How to use miniature in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for miniature

miniature

/ (ˈmɪnɪtʃə) /


noun
  1. a model, copy, or similar representation on a very small scale

  2. anything that is very small of its kind

  1. a very small painting, esp a portrait, showing fine detail on ivory or vellum

  2. a very small bottle of whisky or other spirits, which can hold 50 millilitres

  3. an illuminated letter or other decoration in a manuscript

  4. in miniature on a small scale: games are real life in miniature

adjective
  1. greatly reduced in size

  2. on a small scale; minute

Origin of miniature

1
C16: from Italian, from Medieval Latin miniātūra, from miniāre to paint red, (in illuminating manuscripts); from minium

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