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minute

1
[ min-it ]
/ ˈmɪn ɪt /
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See synonyms for: minute / minuted / minutest / minutes on Thesaurus.com

noun
verb (used with object), min·ut·ed, min·ut·ing.
adjective
prepared in a very short time: minute pudding.
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Idioms about minute

    up to the minute, modern; up-to-date: The building design is up to the minute.

Origin of minute

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, Middle French, from Medieval Latin minūta, noun use of feminine of minūtus minute2

synonym study for minute

2. Minute, instant, moment refer to small amounts of time. A minute, properly denoting 60 seconds, is often used loosely for any very short space of time (and may be interchangeable with second ): I'll be there in just a minute. An instant is practically a point in time, with no duration, though it is also used to mean a perceptible amount of time: not an instant's delay. Moment denotes much the same as instant, though with a somewhat greater sense of duration (but somewhat less than minute ): It will only take a moment.

OTHER WORDS FROM minute

un·min·ut·ed, adjective

Other definitions for minute (2 of 2)

minute2
[ mahy-noot, -nyoot, mi- ]
/ maɪˈnut, -ˈnyut, mɪ- /

adjective, mi·nut·er, mi·nut·est.
extremely small, as in size, amount, extent, or degree: minute differences.
of minor importance; insignificant; trifling.
attentive to or concerned with even the smallest details: a minute examination.

Origin of minute

2
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Latin minūtus (past participle of minuere “to make smaller or fewer”), equivalent to minū- verb stem + -tus past participle suffix; see minus, minor

synonym study for minute

See little.

OTHER WORDS FROM minute

mi·nute·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use minute in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for minute (1 of 2)

minute1
/ (ˈmɪnɪt) /

noun
verb (tr)
to record in minutesto minute a meeting
to time in terms of minutes
See also minutes

Word Origin for minute

C14: from Old French from Medieval Latin minūta, n. use of Latin minūtus minute ²

British Dictionary definitions for minute (2 of 2)

minute2
/ (maɪˈnjuːt) /

adjective
very small; diminutive; tiny
unimportant; petty
precise or detaileda minute examination

Derived forms of minute

minuteness, noun

Word Origin for minute

C15: from Latin minūtus, past participle of minuere to diminish
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

Scientific definitions for minute

minute
[ mĭnĭt ]

A unit of time equal to 160 of an hour or 60 seconds.♦ A sidereal minute is 160 of a sidereal hour, and a mean solar minute is 160 of a mean solar hour. See more at sidereal time solar time.
A unit of angular measurement, such as longitude or right ascension, that is equal to 160 of a degree or 60 seconds.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with minute

minute

see at the last minute; every minute counts; just a minute; mile a minute; wait a minute.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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