MINUSCULE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does minuscule mean? 

• MINUSCULE (noun)
  The noun MINUSCULE has 2 senses:

1. the characters that were once kept in bottom half of a compositor's type case

2. a small cursive script developed from uncial between the 7th and 9th centuries and used in medieval manuscripts

  Familiarity information: MINUSCULE used as a noun is rare.

• MINUSCULE (adjective)
  The adjective MINUSCULE has 3 senses:

1. of or relating to a small cursive script developed from uncial; 7th to 9th centuries

2. lowercase

3. extremely small

  Familiarity information: MINUSCULE used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MINUSCULE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The characters that were once kept in bottom half of a compositor's type case

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

lower-case letter; lowercase; minuscule; small letter

Hypernyms ("minuscule" is a kind of...):

character; graph; grapheme; graphic symbol (a written symbol that is used to represent speech)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A small cursive script developed from uncial between the 7th and 9th centuries and used in medieval manuscripts

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("minuscule" is a kind of...):

cursive; cursive script; longhand; running hand (rapid handwriting in which letters are set down in full and are cursively connected within words without lifting the writing implement from the paper)

Derivation:

minuscular (of or relating to a small cursive script developed from uncial; 7th to 9th centuries)

• MINUSCULE (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of or relating to a small cursive script developed from uncial; 7th to 9th centuries

Synonyms:

minuscular; minuscule

Also:

lowercase (relating to small (not capitalized) letters that were kept in the lower half of a compositor's type case)

Antonym:

majuscule (of or relating to a style of writing characterized by somewhat rounded capital letters; 4th to 8th centuries)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Lowercase

Synonyms:

little; minuscule; small

Context example:

e.e.cummings's poetry is written all in minuscule letters

Similar:

lowercase (relating to small (not capitalized) letters that were kept in the lower half of a compositor's type case)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Extremely small

Synonyms:

miniscule; minuscule

Context example:

a minuscule amount of rain fell

Similar:

little; small (limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent)

 Context examples 

During its first observing campaign, K2 trained its gaze on a patch of sky in the constellation Virgo, measuring the minuscule change in brightness of the distant white dwarf.

(K2 Finds Dead Star Vaporizing a Mini 'Planet', NASA)

The Kepler space telescope hunts for planets by detecting the minuscule drop in a star’s brightness that occurs when a planet crosses in front of it, called a transit.

(NASA Releases Kepler Survey Catalog with Hundreds of New Planet Candidates, NASA)

During the period of Dec. 15, 2016 to March 4, the Kepler spacecraft, operating as the K2 mission, collected data on the star's minuscule changes in brightness due to transiting planets.

(NASA's Kepler Provides Another Peek at Ultra-cool Neighbor, NASA)

The contrast solution that the team developed contains a short piece of protein, or peptide, tagged with a minuscule magnet.

(Tell-tale biomarker detects early breast cancer, NIH)