minim

[min-uh m]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR minim ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the smallest unit of liquid measure, 1/60 (0.0167) of a fluid dram, roughly equivalent to one drop. Abbreviation: min, min.; Symbol: ♍, ♏

Music. a note, formerly the shortest in use, but now equivalent in time value to one half of a semibreve; half note.

the least quantity of anything.

something very small or insignificant.

(initial capital letter) a member of a mendicant religious order founded in the 15th century by St. Francis of Paola.

adjective

smallest.

very small.

Origin of minim

1400–50; late Middle English < Medieval Latin, Latin minimus; as musical term, < Medieval Latin (nota) minima; see minimum

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for minim

Historical Examples of minim

In such a case, the third minim adds nothing to the duration of the bar, as some conductors seem to imagine.
The Orchestral Conductor
Hector Berlioz
He knew to a minim how much brandy had evaporated since his last survey of the sideboard.
The Strange Case of Mortimer Fenley
Louis Tracy
It is not exactly Greek music, Mr. Minim, that you are giving us for our Aristophanic choruses.
Gryll Grange
Thomas Love Peacock
Pernitrate of iron in from 10 to 30 minim doses is a valuable remedy.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley
It is to be given in ten to twenty minim doses, largely diluted.
Essentials of Diseases of the Skin
Henry Weightman Stelwagon

British Dictionary definitions for minim

minim

noun

a unit of fluid measure equal to one sixtieth of a drachm. It is approximately equal to one dropSymbol: M, ♏

music a note having the time value of half a semibreveUsual US and Canadian name: half-note

a small or insignificant person or thing

a downward stroke in calligraphy

adjective

rare very small; tiny

Word Origin for minim

C15 (in its musical meaning): from Latin minimus smallest

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

Word Origin and History for minim

mid-15c., in music, from Latin minimus "smallest, least; minute, trifling, insignificant;" of time, "least, shortest, very short;" of age, "youngest;" as a noun, "least price, lowest price" (see minimum). Calligraphy sense is from c.1600.

Medicine definitions for minim

minim

[mĭn′əm]

n.

In the United States, a unit of volume equal to 160 of a fluid dram, or 0.0616 milliliters.

In Great Britain, 120 of a scruple, or 0.0592 milliliters.

The smallest or the least of several similar structures.

minim

noun

adjective

RELATED WORDS

Origin of minim

Examples from the Web for minim

Historical Examples of minim

minim

noun

adjective

Word Origin for minim

minim

n.