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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

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

petit Petit

She once filmed herself plating an elaborate dessert—a petit gâteau in the shape of a Christmas ornament from the Miami bakery Bachour—only to have it slip off her spatula and break.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 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

It could be the day for the petit basset griffon Vendéen named for Buddy Holly.

From Seattle Times ● May 8, 2023

"Good girl, Zo. Such a good petit," Sophia says.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton

So far, early users of Mistral Large 4 have been using the cyber capabilities of the model to perform automated penetration testing, said Corentin Petit, the startup’s vice president of solutions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

Grigoryan cites the famous Big Mec — celebrity chef Ludo Lefebvre’s decadent, French-inspired burger at Petit Trois — which costs $38.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

“Watching them get acquired by Shein isn’t just a business story, it feels like a generational story, because we were promised that millennial retail could be different,” Petit said of the news about Everlane.

From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026

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

From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026

He was the athlete of his gen­eration at Petit Seminaire, a fearsome bowler and a powerful batter, the captain of the town’s best cricket team, our very own Kapil Dev.

From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

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