minutia

noun

mi·​nu·​tia mə-ˈnü-sh(ē-)ə 

mī-, 

-ˈnyü-

plural minutiae mə-ˈnü-shē-ˌē 

-ˌī, 

mī-, 

-ˈnyü-, 

-sh(ē-)ə

: a minute or minor detail

—usually used in plural

He was bewildered by the contract's minutiae.

Did you know?

Minutia Has Latin Roots

We’ll try not to bore you with the minor details of minutia, though some things are worth noting about the word’s history and usage. It’ll only take a minute! Minutia was borrowed into English in the 18th century from the Latin plural noun minutiae, meaning “trifles” or “details,” which comes from the singular noun minutia, meaning “smallness.” In English, minutia is most often used in the plural as either minutiae (pronounced \muh-NOO-shee-ee\) or, on occasion, as simply minutia. The Latin minutia, incidentally, comes from minutus (also the ancestor of the familiar English word minute), an adjective meaning “small” that was created from the verb minuere, meaning “to lessen.”

Did you know?

How to Pronounce Minutia and Minutiae

Minutiae, we’ve established, is the plural of minutia and also far more common in prose than the singular minutia. There is, however, confusion over the pronunciation of both the singular and the plural, and the confusion may be leading some to use the singular minutia where the plural minutiae is called for. Minutia, the singular, is generally pronounced \muh-NOO-shee-uh\ or \muh-NOO-shuh\, and the plural minutiae should be properly pronounced \muh-NOO-shee-ee\. But transcripts of spoken English show that this is not always adhered to: minutia shows up in transcribed speech far more often than it does in edited writing, and usually in places where one would expect minutiae. This leads us to believe that the pronunciation of minutiae is merging with the pronunciation of minutia, or that minutia is being re-analyzed as a zero plural.

Examples of minutia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Lost in the minutiae of defeat was another spectacular performance by Flagg, who finished with 36 points, nine rebounds and six assists to lead the Mavericks in his first game against his favorite childhood team. —Mike Curtis, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026

Baseball games can be won and lost in the minutiae. —Charlotte Varnes, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026

And then the agents usually get involved with just scheduling and all the minutiae of contract stuff, and travel, obviously. —Max Gao, Variety, 30 Jan. 2026

As the minutes ticked by, Avalos was beckoned by advocates to deal with the minutiae of legal immigration. —Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin minutiae trifles, details, from plural of minutia smallness, from minutus

First Known Use

1748, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for minutia

• minutiae

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