microcosm

[ mahy-kruh-koz-uhm ]

noun

1. a little world; a world in miniature ( macrocosm ):

   The human body is a microcosm.

2. anything regarded as a representative, miniature version of a larger complex reality:

   The fictional small town of Black Rock, California, serves as a microcosm of America in the postwar era.

3. Environmental Science. a controlled experimental environment or ecosystem small enough to be housed in a laboratory and reproducing conditions that occur on a larger scale in the outdoors: Compare mesocosm ( def ).

   Researchers have investigated the survival of this bacteria in saline solutions and seawater in laboratory microcosms.

4. human beings, humanity, society, or the like, viewed as an epitome or miniature of the world or universe:

   In the human microcosm, intellect is the deep spiritual center of being.

microcosm

/ ˈmaɪkrəʊˌkɒzəm; ˌmaɪkrəʊˈkɒzmɒs /

noun

1. a miniature representation of something, esp a unit, group, or place regarded as a copy of a larger one
2. man regarded as epitomizing the universe

microcosm

1. A representation of something on a much smaller scale. Microcosm means “small world,” and in the thought of the Renaissance , it was applied specifically to human beings, who were considered to be small-scale models of the universe, with all its variety and contradiction. ( Compare macrocosm .)

Derived Forms

• ˌmicroˈcosmic, adjective

Other Words From

• mi·cro·cos·mic [mahy-kr, uh, -, koz, -mik], mi·cro·cos·mi·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of microcosm¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; micro- ( def ) + -cosm ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of microcosm¹

C15: via Medieval Latin from Greek mikros kosmos little world

Example Sentences

I spoke with pawnbrokers across the country about what the business has been like in this unprecedented year, and the picture that emerged was a microcosm of the economy that flies under the radar for many.

From Vox

Hsieh wanted to create a microcosm of Silicon Valley that was infused with the ethos of Burning Man.

From Quartz

Artists are trying to make plurality work in these little microcosms.

From Washington Post

In some ways, the boycott was a microcosm for how some advertisers see inclusive media buying.

From Digiday

Schools really are their own microcosm where you have a lot of individuals from different areas in the community coming in.

From FiveThirtyEight

But what happens at Winchester University is a microcosm of the cruel world beyond its be-crested gates.

From The Daily Beast

I begin to observe that it sounds as if Sully is in microcosm what Newman himself…but that is as far as I get.

From The Daily Beast

The way he approaches his sexual escapades is only a microcosm of his general douchebag approach to life.

From The Daily Beast

Altogether, the monks, the Dukes, and the winemakers created a microcosm the influence of which can still be felt today.

From The Daily Beast

Immigration reform is a hugely consequential microcosm of the national political debate.

From The Daily Beast

The broad-beamed budgerow presented a strangely accurate microcosm of India at that moment.

From Project Gutenberg

We grant that man is a very complex machine, a microcosm peopled with possibilities of which we can understand but little.

From Project Gutenberg

Maimonides knew Joseph ibn Zaddik favorably, but he was not familiar with the "Microcosm."

From Project Gutenberg

Man is called "Microcosm," a world in miniature, because he has in him represented all the elements of the universe.

From Project Gutenberg

We must now review briefly the practical part of Ibn Zaddik's philosophy as it is found in the fourth part of the "Microcosm."

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• earth
• nature