different between scant vs small

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /skænt/
• Rhymes: -ænt

Etymology 1

From Middle English scant, from Old Norse skamt, neuter of skammr (“short”), from Proto-Germanic *skammaz (“short”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)?em- (“mutilated, hornless”).

Adjective

scant (comparative scanter, superlative scantest)

1. Very little, very few.
2. Not full, large, or plentiful; scarcely sufficient; scanty; meager; not enough.
   • 1824, John Watkins, Life of Hugh Latimer

     His sermon was scant, in all, a quarter of an hour.

3. Sparing; parsimonious; chary.

Synonyms

• (very little, few): few, little, slight
• (rare, scarce): geason; see also Thesaurus:rare

Antonyms

• (very little, few): ample, plenty

Derived terms

• scanty

Related terms

• scantily

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English scanten, from the adjective (see above).

Verb

scant (third-person singular simple present scants, present participle scanting, simple past and past participle scanted)

1. (transitive) To limit in amount or share; to stint.
   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Building

     where man hath a great living laid together and where he is scanted

   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Building

     I am scanted in the pleasure of dwelling on your actions.

2. (intransitive) To fail, or become less; to scantle.

Etymology 3

From Middle English scant, from the adjective (see above).

Noun

scant (plural scants)

1. (masonry) A block of stone sawn on two sides down to the bed level.
2. (masonry) A sheet of stone.
3. (wood) A slightly thinner measurement of a standard wood size.

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:scant.

Etymology 4

From Middle English scant, from the adjective (see above).

Adverb

scant (not comparable)

1. With difficulty; scarcely; hardly.

   • So weak that he was scant able to go down the stairs.

   • 1597, Francis Bacon, Of the Colours of Good and Evil

     the Epicure , that will scant endure the Stoic to be in sight of him

Noun

scant

1. Scarcity; lack.

Anagrams

• can'st, canst, cants, casn't

English

Pronunciation

• (UK)
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /sm??l/
• • Rhymes: -??l
• (US)
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /sm?l/
  • (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /sm?l/
• (Canada) IPA^(key): /sm?l/
• (General Australian, General New Zealand) IPA^(key): /smo?l/

Etymology

From Middle English smal, from Old English smæl (“small, narrow, slender”), from Proto-Germanic *smalaz (“small”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mal-, *(s)mel- (“small, mean, malicious”). Cognate with Scots smal; sma (“small”); West Frisian smel (“narrow”); Dutch smal (“narrow”); German schmal (“narrow, small”); Danish, Norwegian, Swedish smal (“narrow; thin; slender”); Latin malus (“bad”); Russian ?????? (mályj, “small”).

Adjective

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)

1. Not large or big; insignificant; few in number.

2. (figuratively) Young, as a child.

3. (writing, incomparable) Minuscule or lowercase, referring to written or printed letters.
4. Envincing little worth or ability; not large-minded; paltry; mean.
   • 1851, Thomas Carlyle, The Life of John Sterling

     A true delineation of the smallest man is capable of interesting the greatest man.

5. Not prolonged in duration; not extended in time; short.

6. (archaic) Slender, gracefully slim.

Synonyms

• (not large or big): little, microscopic, minuscule, minute, tiny; see also Thesaurus:tiny
• (young, as a child): little, wee (Scottish), young
• (of written letters): lowercase, minuscule

Antonyms

• See also Thesaurus:large
• (not large or big): capital, big, generous (said of an amount of something given), large
• (young, as a child): adult, grown-up, old
• (of written letters): big, capital, majuscule, uppercase

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallest)

1. In a small fashion. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
2. In or into small pieces.
   • 2009, Ingrid Hoffman, CBS Early Morning for September 28, 2009 (transcription)

     That's going to go in there. We've got some chives small chopped as well.

3. (obsolete) To a small extent.
4. (obsolete) In a low tone; softly.

Derived terms

• writ small

Noun

small (plural smalls)

1. (rare) Any part of something that is smaller or slimmer than the rest, now usually with anatomical reference to the back.

Derived terms

• small of the back

Verb

small (third-person singular simple present smalls, present participle smalling, simple past and past participle smalled)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To make little or less.
2. (intransitive) To become small; to dwindle.
   • 1917, Thomas Hardy, The Clock of the Years

     And smalled till she was nought at all.

Anagrams

• malls

Icelandic

Verb

small (strong)

1. first-person singular past indicative of smella
2. third-person singular past indicative of smella

Low German

Etymology

From Middle Low German smal, from Old Saxon smal, from Proto-Germanic *smalaz. Cognate with German schmal, Dutch smal, English small.

Adjective

small (comparative smaller, superlative smallst)

1. narrow
2. small, slender

Declension

Middle English

Adjective

small

1. Alternative form of smal

Norwegian Bokmål

Verb

small

1. (non-standard since 2005) past tense of smelle

Norwegian Nynorsk

Verb

small

1. past tense of smella

Swedish

Verb

small

1. past tense of smälla.

Anagrams

• malls