adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of minimal
Explanation
Minimal means the smallest possible, or the least — as in, "She passed the test with minimal studying." Minimal can also mean simple, as in "The apartment had a minimal decor scheme: white walls, no art, a simple black couch." When there is "minimal supervision" at a slumber party, few grownups are present. When you spend the "minimal amount of money" on a trip, you won't be staying at the Ritz. If you grew up with minimal contact with one of your parents, you barely saw or spoke to them. If you like to keep things simple, you might call yourself a minimalist, or a believer in minimalism.
Vocabulary lists containing minimal
Life As We Knew It
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"The Hunger Games" Vocabulary from Chapter 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Cofnas added that “Many passages are lifted with minimal editing, sometimes retaining copy-editing mistakes from the original source,” and found similar issues in other papers written by Arday.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
Burnham said there was a "minimal exchange of information of zero consequence".
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
The Angels were such a minimal part of Disney’s portfolio that then-chief executive Michael Eisner showed up in the clubhouse and the players had no idea who he was.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Berger, a former informant known, according to Mr. Oltermann, for his “monkish asceticism,” embodied a “sense of poetic mission”—though his own verse talents were minimal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
His gear seemed exceedingly minimal for the harsh conditions of the interior, which in April still lay buried under the winter snowpack.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
