tiny

adjective ti·ny \ ˈtī-nē \

Updated on: 14 Apr 2018

Definition of tiny

tinier; tiniest

: very small or diminutive : minute

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tinily

play \ˈtī-nə-lē\ adverb

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tininess

play \ˈtī-nē-nəs\ noun

See tiny defined for English-language learners

See tiny defined for kids

Examples of tiny in a Sentence

The computer chips were tiny.
He's from a tiny town that you've probably never heard of.
There's just one tiny little problem.
Aren't you even a tiny bit scared?

Recent Examples of tiny from the Web

Eventually, canine finalists lived in tiny pressurized capsules for days and then weeks at a time.

— alice george, Smithsonian, "The Sad, Sad Story of Laika, the Space Dog, and Her One-Way Trip into Orbit," 12 Apr. 2018
The pop star dropped into Bang Bang Tattoo in New York City one evening in 2016, and asked for a tiny cross near the corner of his eye, which took just a few seconds.

— alex wong, GQ, "The Tattoo Artist Who Gives Supermodels Their Itty-Bitty Micro Tattoos," 11 Apr. 2018
Without spoiling too much, the fourth episode veers from sharp tragedy to surreal visual comedy to a wackadoo mission in a tiny English village that’s more Little Britain than Homeland.

— sophie gilbert, The Atlantic, "Killing Eve Is a Sign of TV to Come," 11 Apr. 2018
Sole proprietor Scott Chambers was inside servicing a rugged mountain bike, with a tiny youth bike also on the work stand and a sleek women's triathlon bike in line.

— courtney mcgee, baltimoresun.com, "Bike shop in Anneslie fulfills owner's longtime dream," 11 Apr. 2018
On Tuesday, Santos scanned the aisles at a Target on Alafaya Trail, filling her shopping cart with clothes, diapers, nail clippers and tiny hangers.

— bianca padró ocasio, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Orlando church helps displaced Puerto Rican families welcome post-Maria babies," 11 Apr. 2018
Blatstein had originally named the centerpiece of his development blitz the Piazza, after Rome’s Piazza Navona, and filled it with tiny art galleries and boutiques and hip bars with outdoor seating.

— samantha melamed, Philly.com, "I went to visit the ruins of the Piazza, and found Urban Village Brewing Co.," 11 Apr. 2018
From a nutrition perspective, this tiny seed is packed with vitamins and minerals.

— ashleigh spitza, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Millet, the underdog of grains, packs a punch of nutrients," 11 Apr. 2018
Even when Facebook downplayed the importance of the echo chamber effect in their own Science study, the data was based on a tiny snapshot of users (i.e. those who declared their political ideology or about 4% of the total Facebook population).

— sander van der linden, Scientific American, "Psychological Weapons of Mass Persuasion," 10 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tiny.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of tiny

alteration of Middle English tine

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1598

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

tiny Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of tiny

small, little, diminutive, minute, tiny, miniature mean noticeably below average in size. small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.