petit
English
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈpɛti/, /pəˈtiː/
- (US) IPA(key): /ˈpɛɾi/, /pəˈti/, /pəˈtit/
- Rhymes: (UK) -ɛti, (UK) -iː, (US) -iːt
Etymology 1
From Middle English petit, from Old French petit, from Latin *pitittus, diminutive of Latin *pit-, possibly from Proto-Celtic *pett- (“part, bit, piece”). Compare also Latin pitinnus (“small”), pitulus. Doublet of petty.
Adjective
petit (comparative more petit, superlative most petit)
- (now uncommon, of size) Petite: small, little.
- 1684 or 1685 February 22, Robert South, A Sermon preached at Westminster-Abbey:
- And by what small, petit Hints does the Mind catch hold of, and recover a vanishing Notion?
- 1684 or 1685 February 22, Robert South, A Sermon preached at Westminster-Abbey:
- Petty, in its various senses:
- (obsolete) Few in number.
- (now uncommon, of objects) Unimportant; cheap; easily replaced.
- (law, of scale) Small, minor.
- (now rare) Secondary; lower in rank.
Derived terms
- petit bag
- petit bribing, petit-bribing
- petit canon
- petit cape
- petit captain
- petit chapman
- petit constable
- petit custom
- petit god
- petit juror
- petit jury
- petit larceny
- petit morel
- petit officer
- petit sergeant
- petit sergeanty, petit serjeanty
- petit session
- petit treason
Related terms
- petite, petty
See also
- puisne, puny
Noun
petit (plural petits)
- (obsolete, usually in the plural) A little schoolboy.
- (obsolete, rare) A kind of pigeon.
Etymology 2
From French petit (“brevier”) directly or via German Petit (“brevier”).
Noun
petit (uncountable)
- (printing, dated, French and German contexts) Synonym of brevier.
Anagrams
- Petti
Catalan
Etymology
From Vulgar Latin pittitus, an expressive creation (with variant forms pitinnus, pitulus, piccinus, pitikkus, etc.). Compare Occitan and French petit.
Pronunciation
- (Balearic, Central) IPA(key): /pəˈtit/
- (Valencian) IPA(key): /peˈtit/
Audio (file)
Adjective
petit (feminine petita, masculine plural petits, feminine plural petites)
- small, little
- Antonym: gros
Derived terms
- a les petites
- empetitir
- petitesa
- petitó
Further reading
- “petit” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “petit”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
- “petit” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “petit” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Finnish
Verb
petit
- second-person singular past indicative of pettää
Anagrams
- petti
French
Etymology
From Old French petit, from Vulgar Latin pittitus (775; compare Latin pitinnus, pitulus). Compare Spanish pequeño.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pə.ti/, /p.ti/
audio (file) - (Quebec) IPA(key): [p(ə)tsi]
- (Louisiana) IPA(key): /pti/, /piti/, /ti/
Adjective
petit (feminine petite, masculine plural petits, feminine plural petites)
- small
- un petit verre de vin ― a small glass of wine
- little
- un petit garçon ― a little boy
- petty
- Certaines personnes sont vraiment petites à propos des plus petites choses.
- Some people are really petty about the smallest things.
Usage notes
Only three French adjectives have an irregular comparative: petit (moindre, but in certain senses only), mauvais (pire) and bon (meilleur).
Noun
petit m (plural petits, feminine petite)
- small one (anything that is small)
- little one (anything that is little)
- little one; child (of humans or other animals)
- the young (of a species)
- Le petit du lapin s'appelle le "lapereau".
Usage notes
Often contracted, in popular or familiar speech, to p'tit (/pti/).
Derived terms
- aller son petit bonhomme de chemin
- à petit feu
- au petit bonheur
- aux petits oignons
- avoir un petit creux
- centre de la petite enfance
- chercher la petite bête
- comme des petits pains
- être aux petits soins
- être sur un petit nuage
- femme de petite vertu
- il n'y a pas de petits profits
- jouer petit bras
- le monde est petit
- le petit oiseau va sortir
- les petits ruisseaux font les grandes rivières
- mon petit
- mon petit doigt m'a dit
- nom d'un petit bonhomme
- parc aux petits
- petit ami
- petit à petit
- petit blanc
- petit bois
- petit boulot
- petit-bourgeois
- petit bras
- petit coin
- petit comité
- petit copain
- petit déjeuner
- petit doigt
- petite amie
- petite annonce
- petite bière
- petite bière
- petite bite
- petite bourgeoisie
- petite capitale
- petite copine
- petite couronne
- petit écran
- petite cuiller
- petite culotte
- petite finale
- petite frappe
- petite main
- petite mort
- petite nature
- petite nyctale
- Petite Ourse
- petit épeautre
- petite perception
- petite pluie abat grand vent
- Petite Russie
- petites gens
- petites heures
- petites lèvres
- petite sœur
- petite souris
- petite vérole
- petit filet
- petit four
- petit joueur
- petit jour
- petit juif
- petit largue
- petit mal
- petit matin
- petit monde
- petit nègre
- petit pain
- petit pain au chocolat
- petit panda
- petit père
- petit peuple
- petit pois
- petit poisson deviendra grand
- petit pont
- petit récit
- petits yeux
- plus petit commun multiple
- pour la petite histoire
- regarder par le petit bout de la lorgnette
- s'amuser comme un petit fou
- se faire petit
- se faire tout petit
- vilain petit canard
Descendants
- Michif: pchi
- → Portuguese: petiz
Further reading
- “petit”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Latin
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈpe.tit/, [ˈpɛt̪ɪt̪]
- (Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈpe.tit/, [ˈpɛːt̪it̪]
Verb
petit
- third-person singular present active indicative of petō
Middle French
Etymology
From Old French petit.
Adjective
petit m (feminine singular petite, masculine plural petitz, feminine plural petites)
- small
Descendants
- French: petit
Noun
petit m (plural petits, feminine singular petite, feminine plural petites)
- something that is small
Occitan
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Adjective
petit m (feminine singular petita, masculine plural petits, feminine plural petitas)
- small
- Synonym: pichon
- Antonym: grand
Derived terms
- petitesa
Further reading
- Joan de Cantalausa (2006) Diccionari general occitan a partir dels parlars lengadocians, 2 edition, →ISBN, page 743.
Old French
Alternative forms
- peti, pitet
Etymology
From Latin *pitittus (compare Latin pitinnus, pitulus), which according to Watkins is of imitative origin.[1]
Adjective
petit m (oblique and nominative feminine singular petite)
- small, little
- worthless; valueless
- poor; of poor quality
Declension
Number | Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Subject | petiz | petite | petit |
Oblique | petit | |||
Plural | Subject | petit | petites | |
Oblique | petiz |
Descendants
- Middle French: petit
- French: petit
- → English: petit, petty
- → Italian: petitto
References
- “petit”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN.