minuscule

American  

[min-uh-skyool, mi-nuhs-kyool] / ˈmɪn əˌskjul, mɪˈnʌs kjul /

adjective

1. very small.

2. (of letters or writing) small; not capital.

3. written in such letters (opposed to majuscule).

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noun

• minuscules
  plural

1. a minuscule letter.

2. a small cursive script developed in the 7th century a.d. from the uncial, which it afterward superseded.

minuscule British  

/ ˈmɪnəˌskjuːl /

noun

1. a lower-case letter

2. writing using such letters

3. a small cursive 7th-century style of lettering derived from the uncial

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adjective

1. relating to, printed in, or written in small letters Compare majuscule

2. very small

3. (of letters) lower-case

Spelling

Minuscule, from Latin minus meaning “less,” has frequently come to be spelled miniscule, perhaps under the influence of the prefix mini- in the sense “of a small size.” Although this newer spelling is criticized by many, it occurs with such frequency in edited writing that some consider it a variant spelling rather than a misspelling.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• minuscular
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• minuscules
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of minuscule

First recorded in 1695–1705; from Latin minusculus “smallish, pretty small, minor”; see minus, -cule ¹

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Explanation

When something is teeny tiny, it is minuscule. If your mother calls your miniskirt minuscule, it probably means she wants you to change into something a bit less revealing. In minuscule, you see the word, minus, which means lesser. The word minuscule has its roots in the Latin expression minuscula littera, a phrase used to describe the smaller letters in text. In the late 1800s, the use of the word expanded to mean very small in general — so the definition of minuscule became less minuscule.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

minuscule minuscules

That’s a minuscule fraction of the $1.2 million that Americans think they’ll need to retire comfortably, according to the asset-management firm Schroders.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

"The field is expected to supply only a minuscule share of UK gas demand for a limited period," said Jess Ralston, analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, a non-profit research group.

From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026

Their minuscule tenures represent an impressive race to the bottom in a once-prestigious role that was created just under a century ago, during the Great Depression.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

Gazza's baggy Roman shellsuit, John Charles plundering black-and-white goals in Turin, King Kev's floodlit perm dazzling Volksparkstadion terraces, Glenn Hoddle's minuscule Monegasque shorts.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

Quivering with the uncertainty of pioneers, dreading that they might have been led astray by some minuscule miscalculation, they wrote a short note for publication and hastened to Lawrence’s house for his approval.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Bousset has argued that the readings in the Pauline epistles found in אc H and a few minuscules represent the text used by Pamphilus, and on the whole this view seems to be highly probable.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7 "Bible" to "Bisectrix" by Various

It must be remembered that the dating of the MSS., especially of minuscules, is by no means certain: Greek Palaeography is a difficult subject, and not all the MSS. have been investigated by competent palaeographers.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7 "Bible" to "Bisectrix" by Various

Had the introduction of printing been preceded by a revival of the beautiful Greek book-hand of the eleventh century, similar to the revival of the Caroline minuscules, all would have been well.

From A Short History of English Printing, 1476-1898 by Alfred W. (Alfred William) Pollard

There is abundant evidence elsewhere in the Letters that the immediate ancestor of BF was written in minuscules; I need not elaborate this point.

From A Sixth-Century Fragment of the Letters of Pliny the Younger A Study of Six Leaves of an Uncial Manuscript Preserved in the Pierpont Morgan Library New York by E. A. (Elias Avery) Lowe

If minuscules are used, the words should be transliterated as quinque, queen, Europe, according to the practice of the old printers themselves.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7 "Bible" to "Bisectrix" by Various

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Related Words

• insignificant
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