minimus

American  

[min-uh-muhs] / ˈmɪn ə məs /

noun

plural

minimi

1. a creature or being that is the smallest or least significant.

2. Anatomy. the little finger or toe.

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minimus British  

/ ˈmɪnɪməs /

adjective

1. (immediately postpositive) the youngest: sometimes used after the surname of a schoolboy having elder brothers at the same school

   Hunt minimus

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Etymology

Origin of minimus

1580–90; < New Latin, Latin: literally, smallest

Example Sentences

“I never even thought about the apartment. It was de minimus, in my mind,” Weisselberg said.

From Salon • Feb. 7, 2024

“I don't think a country with a de minimus residual coal fleet is necessarily going to shame big coal consumers into radical change,” said Kevin Book, managing director of ClearView Energy Partners LLC.

From Scientific American • Jul. 1, 2021

About calves, hamstrings, Achilles, knees and weak glutes — they’re the three muscles in the buttocks: gluteus maximus, medius and minimus.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 24, 2019

However, “given the lack of priors, the de minimus nature of the contact and the apology letter,” the state dismissed the counts, Knight told the judge.

From Washington Post • Apr. 15, 2019

The development of the cingular ridges leads one to suspect that B. minimus was the ancestor of B. musculus.

From Speciation and Evolution of the Pygmy Mice, Genus Baiomys by Packard, Robert L.