*minu*

n. The metallic element forming the base of alumina. This metal is white, but with a bluish tinge, and is remarkable for its resistance to oxidation, and for its lightness, having a specific gravity of about 2.6. Atomic weight 27.08. Symbol Al. Also called aluminium. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

. (Elec.) The quantity of electricity delivered in hour by a current whose average strength is one ampère. It is used as a unit of charge quantity; the Ampere hour is equal to 3600 coulombs. The terms and are sometimes similarly used. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Comminuted; p. pr. & vb. n. Comminuting. ] [ L. comminutus, p. p. of comminuere to comminute; com- + minuere to lessen. See Minute. ] To reduce to minute particles, or to a fine powder; to pulverize; to triturate; to grind; as, to comminute chalk or bones; to comminute food with the teeth. Pennant. [ 1913 Webster ]

Comminuted fracture. See under Fracture. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act of reducing to a fine powder or to small particles; pulverization; the state of being comminuted. Bentley. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Surg.) Fracture (of a bone) into a number of pieces. Dunglison. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Gradual diminution by the removal of small particles at a time; a lessening; a wearing away. [ 1913 Webster ]

Natural and necessary comminution of our lives. Johnson. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. [ It., p. pr. of diminuere to diminish. ] (Mus.) In a gradually diminishing manner; with abatement of tone; decrescendo; -- expressed on the staff by Dim., or Dimin., or the sign. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. diminuens, p. pr. of diminuere. See Diminish. ] Lessening. Bp. Sanderson. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Indicating or causing diminution. Earle. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Small; diminished; diminutive. [ Obs. ] Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. Diminutively. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. diminutio, or perh. rather deminutio: cf. F. diminution. See Diminish. ] 1. The act of diminishing, or of making or becoming less; state of being diminished; reduction in size, quantity, or degree; -- opposed to augmentation or increase. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The act of lessening dignity or consideration, or the state of being deprived of dignity; a lowering in estimation; degradation; abasement. [ 1913 Webster ]

The world's opinion or diminution of me. Eikon Basilike. [ 1913 Webster ]

Nor thinks it diminution to be ranked
In military honor next. Philips. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Law) Omission, inaccuracy, or defect in a record. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Mus.) In counterpoint, the imitation of, or reply to, a subject, in notes of half the length or value of those the subject itself.

Syn. -- Decrease; decay; abatement; reduction; deduction; decrement. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Indicating diminution; diminutive. “Diminutival forms” [ of words ]. Earle. -- n. A diminutive. Earle. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. L. deminutivus, F. diminutif. ] 1. Below the average size; very small; little. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Expressing diminution; as, a diminutive word. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Tending to diminish. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Diminutive of liberty. Shaftesbury. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. Something of very small size or value; an insignificant thing. [ 1913 Webster ]

Such water flies, diminutives of nature. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Gram.) A derivative from a noun, denoting a small or a young object of the same kind with that denoted by the primitive; as, gosling, eaglet, lambkin. [ 1913 Webster ]

Babyisms and dear diminutives. Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The word sometimes denotes a derivative verb which expresses a diminutive or petty form of the action, as scribble. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. In a diminutive manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of being diminutive; smallness; littleness; minuteness. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n.; pl. Domini [ L., master. See Dame. ] Master; sir; -- a title of respect formerly applied to a knight or a clergyman, and sometimes to the lord of a manor. Cowell. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Fulminic + cyanuric. ] (Chem.) Pertaining to fulminic and cyanuric acids, and designating an acid so called. [ 1913 Webster ]

Fulminuric acid (Chem.), a white, crystalline, explosive substance, H3C3N3O3, forming well known salts, and obtained from the fulminates. It is isomeric with cyanuric acid, and hence is also called isocyanuric acid. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. (Zool.) A large edible river fish (Erythrinus macrodon) of Guiana. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. imminutio, fr. imminuere, imminutum, to lessen; pref. im- in + minuere. ] A lessening; diminution; decrease. [ R. ] Ray. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. minuendus to be diminished, fr. minuere to lessen, diminish. See Minish. ] (Arith.) In the process of subtraction{ 2 }, the number from which another number (the subtrahend) is to be subtracted, to find the difference. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

n. [ F., fr. menu small, L. minutus small. So called on account of the short steps of the dance. See 4th Minute. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A slow graceful dance consisting of a coupee, a high step, and a balance. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Mus.) A tune or air to regulate the movements of the dance so called; a movement in suites, sonatas, symphonies, etc., having the dance form, and commonly in 3-4, sometimes 3-8, measure. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ See 2d Minion, Minum, 6. ] [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A small kind of printing type; minion. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Mus.) A minim. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. See Minor, and cf. Mis- pref. from the French. ] (Math.) Less; requiring to be subtracted; negative; as, a minus quantity. [ 1913 Webster ]

Minus sign (Math.), the sign [ - ] denoting minus, or less, prefixed to negative quantities, or quantities to be subtracted. See Negative sign, under Negative. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. minuses A factor counted as a disadvantage; a loss or potential loss in a situation or plan; as, he added up all the pluses and minuses and decided not to do it; as, the lack of money is a big minus in an election campaign. [ PJC ]

adj. of or relating to minuscule script, a small cursive script developed from uncial, and used in the 7th to 9th centuries.
Syn. -- minuscule. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. [ L. minusculus rather small, fr. minus less: cf. F. minuscule. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Any very small, minute object. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A small Roman letter which is neither capital nor uncial; a manuscript written in such letters. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. a. Of or relating to a minuscule{ 2 } or of a script written in minuscules{ 2 }; of the size and style of minuscules{ 2 }; written in minuscules{ 2 }; minuscular. [ 1913 Webster + WordNet 1.5 ]

These minuscule letters are cursive forms of the earlier uncials. I. Taylor (The Alphabet). [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Pertaining to, or consisting of, minutes. [ Obs. ] Fuller. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ LL. minuta a small portion, small coin, fr. L. minutus small: cf. F. minute. See 4th Minute. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. The sixtieth part of an hour; sixty seconds. (Abbrev. m. or min.; as, 4 h. 30 m.) [ 1913 Webster ]

Four minutes, that is to say, minutes of an hour. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The sixtieth part of a degree; sixty seconds (Marked thus (′); as, 10° 20′). [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A nautical or a geographic mile. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A coin; a half farthing. [ Obs. ] Wyclif (Mark xii. 42) [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A very small part of anything, or anything very small; a jot; a tittle. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Minutes and circumstances of his passion. Jer. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. A point of time; a moment. [ 1913 Webster ]

I go this minute to attend the king. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. pl. The memorandum; a record; a note to preserve the memory of anything; as, to take minutes of a contract; to take minutes of a conversation or debate; to read the minutes of the last meeting. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. (Arch.) A fixed part of a module. See Module. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Different writers take as the minute one twelfth, one eighteenth, one thirtieth, or one sixtieth part of the module. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of or pertaining to a minute or minutes; occurring at or marking successive minutes. [ 1913 Webster ]

Minute bell, a bell tolled at intervals of a minute, as to give notice of a death or a funeral. --
Minute book, a book in which written minutes are entered. --
Minute glass, a glass measuring a minute or minutes by the running of sand. --
Minute gun, a discharge of a cannon repeated every minute as a sign of distress or mourning. --
Minute hand, the long hand of a watch or clock, which makes the circuit of the dial in an hour, and marks the minutes. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Minuted; p. pr. & vb. n. Minuting. ] To set down a short sketch or note of; to jot down; to make a minute or a brief summary of. [ 1913 Webster ]

The Empress of Russia, with her own hand, minuted an edict for universal tolerance. Bancroft. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. minutus, p. p. of minuere to lessen. See Minish, Minor, and cf. Menu, Minuet. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Very small; little; tiny; fine; slight; slender; inconsiderable; as, minute details. “Minute drops.” Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Attentive to small things; paying attention to details; critical; particular; precise; as, a minute observer; minute observation. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Little; diminutive; fine; critical; exact; circumstantial; particular; detailed. -- Minute, Circumstantial, Particular. A circumstantial account embraces all the leading events; a particular account includes each event and movement, though of but little importance; a minute account goes further still, and omits nothing as to person, time, place, adjuncts, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. A figure which strikes the hour on the bell of some fanciful clocks; -- called also jack of the clock house. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A timeserver; an inconstant person. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. At intervals of a minute; very often and regularly. J. Philips. [ 1913 Webster ]

Minutely proclaimed in thunder from heaven. Hammond. [ 1913 Webster ]

adv. [ From 4th Minute. ] In a minute manner; with minuteness; exactly; nicely. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ From 1st Minute. ] Happening every minute; continuing; unceasing. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Throwing themselves absolutely upon God's minutely providence. Hammond. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Minutemen A militiaman who was to be ready to march at a moment's notice; -- a term used in the American Revolution. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality of being minute. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖ n.; pl. Minutiae [ L., fr. minutus small, minute. See 4th Minute. ] A minute particular; a small or minor detail; -- used chiefly in the plural. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Partially nude; half naked. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.; pl. Termini [ L. See Term. ] 1. Literally, a boundary; a border; a limit. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Myth.) The Roman divinity who presided over boundaries, whose statue was properly a short pillar terminating in the bust of a man, woman, satyr, or the like, but often merely a post or stone stuck in the ground on a boundary line. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Hence, any post or stone marking a boundary; a term. See Term, 8. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Either end of a railroad line; also, the station house, or the town or city, at that place. [ 1913 Webster ]