minute
noun
[ ˈmɪnɪt ]
• a period of time equal to sixty seconds or a sixtieth of an hour.
• "we waited for twenty minutes"
• a sixtieth of a degree of angular measurement (symbol: ʹ).
• "Delta Lyrae is a double star with a separation of over 10 minutes of arc"
Origin:
late Middle English: via Old French from late Latin minuta, feminine (used as a noun) of minutus ‘made small’. The senses ‘period of sixty seconds’ and ‘sixtieth of a degree’ derive from medieval Latin pars minuta prima ‘first minute part’.
minute
adjective
• extremely small.
• "minute particles"
Similar:
tiny,
minuscule,
microscopic,
nanoscopic,
very small,
little,
micro,
microscale,
diminutive,
miniature,
baby,
toy,
midget,
dwarf,
pygmy,
Lilliputian,
wee,
teeny,
teeny-weeny,
teensy,
teensy-weensy,
weeny,
itsy-bitsy,
itty-bitty,
eensy,
eensy-weensy,
pint-sized,
bite-sized,
knee-high to a grasshopper,
titchy,
tiddly,
little-bitty,
Origin:
late Middle English (in the sense ‘lesser’, with reference to a tithe or tax): from Latin minutus ‘lessened’, past participle of minuere .
minute
noun
• a summarized record of the proceedings at a meeting.
• "Pat is taking the minutes"
• an official memorandum authorizing or recommending a course of action.
minute
verb
• record (the proceedings of a meeting).
• "the Secretary shall minute the proceedings of each meeting"
• send a memorandum to (someone).
• "look up the case and minute me about it"
Origin:
late Middle English (in the singular in the sense ‘note or memorandum’): from French minute, from the notion of a rough copy in ‘small writing’ (Latin scriptura minuta ) as distinct from the fair copy in book hand. The verb dates from the mid 16th century.
at the minute
• at the present time.
• "I've got things on my mind at the minute"
