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. 2018

Related Words for minim

chip, lick, stump, speck, taste, chunk, atom, share, shard, dose, dash, slice, dollop, whit, moiety, morsel, trifle, stub, scale, end

Examples from the Web for minim

Historical Examples of minim

Then again she buzzed, this time sending only a single Minim sprawling.
Edge of the Jungle
William Beebe
The first note of the measure, which was a minim, has been changed to a crotchet.
Advice to Singers
Frederick James Crowest
When shaken in a minim measure with half its volume of concentrated solution of chloride of calcium, its volume should not lessen.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley
At such an hour as this Malone wasted no minim of strength in futile anger.
Destiny
Charles Neville Buck
Lesbia set to work to try and explain the functions of a minim, a crotchet, and a quaver.
Loyal to the School
Angela Brazil

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.

minim in Medicine

minim

[mĭn′əm]

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.