Nearby Words
adjective
1.
small; little; tiny: a diminutive building for a model-train layout.
2.
Grammar. pertaining to or productive of a form denoting smallness, familiarity, affection, or triviality, as the suffix -let, in droplet from drop.
noun
3.
a small thing or person.
4.
Grammar. a diminutive element or formation.
5.
Heraldry. a charge, as an ordinary, smaller in length or breadth than the usual.
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Diminutives
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English < Medieval Latin dīminūtīvus, equivalent to Latin dīminūt(us) lessened (for dēminūtus; see diminution) + -īvus -ive
1350–1400; Middle English < Medieval Latin dīminūtīvus, equivalent to Latin dīminūt(us) lessened (for dēminūtus; see diminution) + -īvus -ive
Related forms
di·min·u·tive·ly, adverb
di·min·u·tive·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To diminutives
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
diminutive
late 14c., from O.Fr. diminutif (fem. diminutive), from L. diminutivum, from deminuere (see diminish).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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