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petite. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
petite, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
petite in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
petite you have here. The definition of the word
petite will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
petite, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
Borrowed from French petite f, feminine of petit m (“small, little”).
Pronunciation
Adjective
petite (comparative more petite, superlative most petite)
- (especially of a woman) Fairly short and of slim build.
- (clothing) Of small size; intended for small-framed adult women.
- Small, little; insignificant; petty.
1662, Galileo Galilei, translated by Thomas Salisbury, Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems:The Earth, the Sun, and Stars, what things are they in nature? are they petite things not worth our notice, or grand and worthy of consideration?
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Of a woman: fairly short and of slim build
of women's clothing: of small size
small, little; insignificant; petty
Noun
petite (plural petites)
- (genetics) A mutant first discovered in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, forming small colonies when grown in the presence of fermentable carbon sources such as glucose.
2005, Giorgio Bernardi, Structural and Evolutionary Genomics, page 39:The primary structure of the mitochondrial genomes of these petites had been previously determined […]
References
Anagrams
Esperanto
Adverb
petite
- past adverbial passive participle of peti
French
Pronunciation
Adjective
petite
- feminine singular of petit
Latin
Verb
petite
- second-person plural present active imperative of petō