Smallest — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

Related Entry: Small (adjective)

Small is a different word from Smallest. The synonyms below are for small, not for smallest.

1. of a size that is less than average

   "a small cat who never weighed more than five pounds"

   similar: bantam, diminutive, dinky, dwarfish, fine, half-pint, Lilliputian, little, pint-size, pocket, pocket-size, puny, pygmy, shrimpy, slight, smallish, subnormal, toylike, undersized
   related: dwarf, toy, runtish, runty, scrubby, stunted, bitty, inappreciable, infinitesimal, little bitty, micro, microscopic, mini, miniature, miniaturized, minikin, minim, minuscule, minute, pinpoint, teensy, teensy-weensy, teeny, teeny-weeny, tiny, wee, weeny, meager, poor, scant, scanty, scarce, skimp, skimpy, slender, slim, spare, sparse, stingy, deficient, inadequate, insufficient, lacking, wanting, bite-size, capsule
   opposite: big, biggish, considerable, goodly, grand, great, handsome, husky, king-size, large, largish, outsize, overscale, oversize, sizable, substantial, tidy, whacking, whopping
   near: bulky, hefty, hulking, massive, voluminous, boxcar, Brobdingnagian, Bunyanesque, cavernous, colossal, cyclopean, elephantine, enormous, galactic, gargantuan, giant, gigantic, gross, Himalayan, herculean, heroic, huge, humongous, immense, jumbo, leviathan, mammoth, monolithic, monstrous, monumental, mountainous, pharaonic, prodigious, staggering, stupendous, titanic, tremendous, vast, abundant, ample, appreciable, bountiful, copious, generous, healthy, liberal, plenteous, plentiful, fat, thick, broad, wide, boundless, cosmic, immeasurable, incalculable, infinite, adequate, enough, sufficient

2. small in degree

   "your chances of winning the lottery are so small that it's best not to count on it"

   similar: fragile, frail, negligible, off, outside, remote, slight, slim
   related: marginal, minimal, minor, little, tiny
   opposite: good
   near: great, large, distinct, significant, considerable, goodly, healthy, largish, respectable, sizable, substantial, tidy

3. lacking importance

   "reluctant to bring such a small matter to the boss's attention"

   similar: fiddling, foolish, frivolous, incidental, inconsequential, inconsiderable, insignificant, little, Mickey Mouse, minor, minute, negligible, nugatory, slight, small-fry, trifling, trivial, unimportant, neither here nor there
   related: jerkwater, one-horse, nickel-and-dime, paltry, petty, small-time, worthless, anonymous, nameless, obscure, uncelebrated, unknown
   opposite: big, consequential, eventful, important, major, material, meaningful, momentous, significant, substantial, unfrivolous, weighty
   near: decisive, fatal, fateful, chief, dominant, overbearing, overmastering, overriding, principal, distinctive, exceptional, impressive, outstanding, prominent, remarkable, valuable, worthwhile, worthy, distinguished, eminent, great, illustrious, preeminent, prestigious, famous, notorious, renowned, all-important, basic, essential, fundamental, key

4. not broad or open in views or opinions

   "townspeople who were helpful to one another but who also could be small and intolerant"

   similar: illiberal, insular, Lilliputian, little, narrow, narrow-minded, parochial, petty, picayune, provincial, sectarian, small-minded
   related: inflexible, ironbound, obdurate, obstinate, rigid, set, stubborn, unyielding, wrongheaded, bigoted, intolerant, biased, discriminating, discriminatory, jaundiced, one-sided, partial, partisan, prejudiced, brassbound, hidebound, old-fashioned, reactionary, stodgy, straitlaced, stuffy, dogmatic, opinionated, opinionative, limited, hick, unsophisticated
   opposite: broad-minded, catholic, cosmopolitan, liberal, open, open-minded, receptive, tolerant
   near: impartial, nonpartisan, objective, unbiased, unprejudiced, freethinking