minuscule

[ min-uh-skyool, mi-nuhs-kyool ]

adjective

1. very small.
2. (of letters or writing) small; not capital.
3. written in such letters ( majuscule ).

noun

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 a small cursive script developed in the 7th century a.d. from the uncial, which it afterward superseded.

minuscule

/ ˈmɪnəˌskjuːl; mɪˈnʌskjʊlə /

noun

1. a lower-case letter
2. writing using such letters
3. a small cursive 7th-century style of lettering derived from the uncial

adjective

1. See majuscule
   relating to, printed in, or written in small letters Compare majuscule
2. very small
3. (of letters) lower-case

Spelling Note

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.

Derived Forms

• minuscular, adjective

Other Words From

• mi·nuscu·lar adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of minuscule¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of minuscule¹

C18: from French, from Latin ( littera ) minuscula very small (letter), diminutive of minor

Example Sentences

In a preliminary study that has not yet been reviewed by other researchers, Ristenpart and his team found that homemade cotton masks can shed minuscule particles as people breathe.

From Science News For Students

They are highly susceptible to disturbances from everything from stray magnetic fields to the minuscule imperfections in the control electronics or materials used to build the device.

From Singularity Hub 

They predicted a similarly minuscule drop for September, to just over 10 percent.

From FiveThirtyEight

Radioactivity revealed a new sort of energy, of vast quantity, hidden within the most minuscule components of matter — the parts that made up atoms.

From Science News

Here and there, clumps of particles have created galaxies and stars, but these are just minuscule specks on an otherwise unblemished cosmic canvas.

From Quanta Magazine

An appearance here during his 1993 comeback tour was cancelled following minuscule ticket sales.

From The Daily Beast

Hawking radiation for realistic black holes is a minuscule effect, and the bigger the black hole, the less radiation there is.

From The Daily Beast

Out of that minuscule number of bisexual roles, only two were male characters.

From The Daily Beast

The result is a far more advanced effort that features an investment in offices and staff that makes GOP efforts look minuscule.

From The Daily Beast

Havens thinks that the cost differences for consumers will be minuscule, according to rough model calculations.

From The Daily Beast

None the less it must be said for them that they take fairly good care of their minuscule quadrupeds.

From Project Gutenberg

But some confusions of letters occur frequently in copies of uncial originals, and others in copies of minuscule originals.

From Project Gutenberg

It is a large folio, finely written in a neat minuscule, mainly Saxon hand, with uncial initials in two columns.

From Project Gutenberg

It seemed highly unconvincing, later, because some long-delayed perception produced a reaction in the dinies' minuscule brains.

From Project Gutenberg

That's not a gigantic number, but it's not a minuscule one, either.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• insignificant
• microscopic
• small
• tiny