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• petit
  petit

  adjective

  small; petty; minor.
• Petit
  Petit

  noun

  Roland (rɔlɑ̃). 1924–2011, French ballet dancer and choreographer. His innovative ballets include Carmen (1949), Kraanerg (1969), and The Blue Angel (1985); he also choreographed films, such as Anything Goes (1956) and Black Tights (1960)

petit

American  

[pet-ee, puh-tee] / ˈpɛt i, pəˈti /

adjective

Law.

1. small; petty; minor.

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Petit ¹ British  

/ pəti /

noun

1. Roland (rɔlɑ̃). 1924–2011, French ballet dancer and choreographer. His innovative ballets include Carmen (1949), Kraanerg (1969), and The Blue Angel (1985); he also choreographed films, such as Anything Goes (1956) and Black Tights (1960)

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petit ² British  

/ ˈpɛtɪ /

adjective

1. (prenominal) law of little or lesser importance; small

   petit jury

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Etymology

Origin of petit

1325–75; Middle English < Middle French; see petty

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

petit Petit

“Why can’t I be petit an smol?” she wrote in a Reddit post.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 14, 2026

A steal at $28 for three courses, diners saddle up to the counter, reminiscent of a chef’s table, for a French and Japanese-inspired amuse bouche with a main dessert, followed by petit fours.

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2025

Living in Paris for a year certainly had its share of stresses, mostly because my French language skills never really advanced beyond me saying, Je parle français un petit peu, before switching to English.

From Slate ● Jan. 6, 2025

But a petit basset griffon Vendéen took best in show for the first time last year, as did a bloodhound in 2022.

From Seattle Times ● May 10, 2024

As I read, I imagine each piece of information is like a petit four, dissolving on my tongue.

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy

Dating to Yamamoto’s previous start, against the Angels, he retired 45 straight batters, one shy of the major league record set by Yusmeiro Petit in 2014.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026

Petit said that younger consumers do care about sustainability.

From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026

Haiti's Le Nouvelliste newspaper first reported the death toll, citing Petit.

From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026

Nearly every scene is gripping, but the way Labro and cinematographer Pierre Petit shoot Ventura’s escape through a World War II bunker above a beach in Normandy is heart-stopping.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 21, 2026

He became my favourite teacher at Petit Seminaire and the reason I studied zoology at the University of Toronto.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel