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bantam

 - 3 dictionary results

ban⋅tam

[ban-tuhm]
–noun
1. (often initial capital letter) a chicken of any of several varieties or breeds characterized by very small size.
2. a small and feisty or quarrelsome person.
–adjective
3. diminutive; tiny: bantam editions of the classics.

Origin:
1740–50; appar. after Bantam, through which such chickens may have been imported to Europe


3. miniature, small, petite, wee, pygmy, Lilliputian.

Ban⋅tam

[ban-tuhm; Du. bahn-tahm]
–noun
a village in W Java, in S Indonesia: first Dutch settlement in the East Indies.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To bantam
ban·tam   (bān'təm)   
n.  
  1. Any of various breeds of very small domestic fowl that are often miniatures of members of larger breeds.

  2. A small but aggressive and spirited person.

adj.  
  1. Diminutive; miniature.

  2. Aggressive and spirited.


[After Bantam, former town in Indonesia from which such fowl were thought to have originated.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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