smidgen

or smid·gin, smid·geon

[smij-uh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR smidgen ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a very small amount: a smidgen of jam for your toast.

Origin of smidgen

First recorded in 1835–45; origin uncertain

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for smidgen

whiff, morsel, iota, sliver, particle, dash, crumb, speck, trace, taste, pinch, scintilla, drop, dab, shard, fragment, shred, grain, fraction, atom

Examples from the Web for smidgen

Historical Examples of smidgen

They dove underwater to the soft river bed, Onto darkish green plants with a smidgen of red.
FreeChildrenStories.com Collection
Daniel Errico

British Dictionary definitions for smidgen

smidgen

smidgin

noun

informal a very small amount or part

Word Origin for smidgen

C20: of obscure origin

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

Word Origin and History for smidgen

1845, perhaps from Scottish smitch "very small amount; small insignificant person" (1822). Cf. Northumbrian dialectal smiddum "small particle of lead ore" (1821).