Synonyms of little

little 1 of 3

adjective

ˈli-tᵊl 

1

as in short

having relatively little height

there was a little hedge separating the two lawns

Synonyms & Similar Words

• short
• small
• tiny
• slight
• low
• low-lying
• low-slung
• dwarf
• sawed-off
• wee
• petite
• compact
• diminutive
• dwarfish
• miniature
• teeny
• smallish
• bitty
• mini
• pocket
• flat
• puny
• dinky
• pygmy
• pocket-size
• minute
• undersized
• half-pint
• stubby
• squat
• dumpy
• scrubby
• stunted
• minimized
• squatty
• stumpy
• teeny-weeny
• pint-size
• bantam

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• high
• tall
• lofty
• lifted
• towering
• elevated
• raised
• uplifted
• large
• big
• statuesque
• lanky
• sizable
• high-rise
• altitudinous
• bulky
• rangy
• hefty
• voluminous
• upswept
• oversize
• outsize
• largish
• gangling
• gangly
• hulking

2

as in small

lacking importance

there were just a few little details left to take care of

Synonyms & Similar Words

• small
• minor
• slight
• worthless
• trivial
• unimportant
• insignificant
• trifling
• minute
• incidental
• foolish
• inconsiderable
• frivolous
• negligible
• petty
• inconsequential
• fiddling
• neither here nor there
• nugatory
• small-fry
• Mickey Mouse
• one-horse
• obscure
• anonymous
• small-time
• jerkwater
• unknown
• paltry
• nickel-and-dime
• nameless
• uncelebrated

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• significant
• substantial
• big
• important
• major
• meaningful
• momentous
• eventful
• consequential
• weighty
• decisive
• material
• dominant
• fatal
• principal
• prominent
• chief
• valuable
• remarkable
• impressive
• great
• distinctive
• fateful
• outstanding
• worthy
• overbearing
• exceptional
• overriding
• worthwhile
• basic
• distinguished
• unfrivolous
• eminent
• famous
• fundamental
• illustrious
• essential
• key
• notorious
• prestigious
• overmastering
• all-important
• renowned
• preeminent

3

as in narrow

not broad or open in views or opinions

little-minded people who dislike the fact that human society is always progressing

Synonyms & Similar Words

• small
• narrow
• parochial
• petty
• provincial
• insular
• stubborn
• sectarian
• picayune
• narrow-minded
• Lilliputian
• illiberal
• small-minded
• rigid
• limited
• obstinate
• partisan
• partial
• bigoted
• biased
• reactionary
• obdurate
• intolerant
• discriminatory
• wrongheaded
• stodgy
• old-fashioned
• ironbound
• opinionated
• jaundiced
• dogmatic
• discriminating
• unyielding
• inflexible
• straitlaced
• prejudiced
• hidebound
• stuffy
• unsophisticated
• set
• one-sided
• opinionative
• hick
• brassbound

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• liberal
• open
• receptive
• cosmopolitan
• tolerant
• catholic
• objective
• impartial
• unbiased
• unprejudiced
• broad-minded
• nonpartisan
• open-minded
• freethinking

4

as in brief

not lasting for a considerable time

let's take a little pause to relax

Synonyms & Similar Words

• brief
• short
• sudden
• concise
• fast
• condensed
• momentary
• fleeting
• curtailed
• transient
• transitory
• abbreviated
• compact
• ephemeral
• syncopated
• shortened
• shortish
• abridged
• summary
• pithy
• abrupt
• short-lived
• succinct
• terse
• short-term
• laconic
• crisp
• epigrammatic
• cut-back
• short-range
• impermanent
• compendious

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• long
• great
• far
• lengthy
• extended
• persistent
• endless
• unending
• everlasting
• prolonged
• interminable
• protracted
• permanent
• long-drawn-out
• long-lived
• enlarged
• longish
• overlong
• long-term
• long-range
• expanded
• supplemented

5

as in diminutive

of a size that is less than average

the petting zoo has a little horse in addition to all of the goats and sheep

Synonyms & Similar Words

• small
• diminutive
• tiny
• pocket
• slight
• fine
• miniature
• sparse
• puny
• smallish
• dinky
• undersized
• dwarf
• dwarfish
• poor
• pygmy
• slender
• pocket-size
• spare
• lacking
• half-pint
• mini
• subnormal
• stunted
• Lilliputian
• shrimpy
• minuscule
• miniaturized
• pint-size
• toylike
• wee
• bantam
• microscopic
• teeny
• teensy
• insufficient
• bitty
• micro
• scarce
• toy
• inadequate
• scant
• meager
• scrubby
• minute
• infinitesimal
• skimpy
• scanty
• slim
• weeny
• little bitty
• inappreciable
• stingy
• pinpoint
• minim
• wanting
• teensy-weensy
• runty
• teeny-weeny
• deficient
• runtish
• capsule
• minikin
• skimp
• bite-size

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• large
• considerable
• substantial
• big
• great
• sizable
• handsome
• grand
• huge
• goodly
• massive
• whopping
• enormous
• tremendous
• husky
• tidy
• vast
• giant
• bulky
• oversize
• hefty
• voluminous
• gigantic
• outsize
• immense
• gross
• ample
• appreciable
• mountainous
• colossal
• abundant
• generous
• liberal
• prodigious
• monumental
• staggering
• monstrous
• heroic
• stupendous
• mammoth
• galactic
• healthy
• copious
• plentiful
• jumbo
• gargantuan
• largish
• cavernous
• monolithic
• biggish
• thick
• wide
• titanic
• boxcar
• bountiful
• herculean
• broad
• fat
• whacking
• overscale
• king-size
• Himalayan
• plenteous
• humongous
• enough
• hulking
• sufficient
• adequate
• elephantine
• infinite
• cosmic
• cyclopean
• boundless
• pharaonic
• Brobdingnagian
• leviathan
• immeasurable
• incalculable
• Bunyanesque

little

2 of 3

adverb

1

as in slightly

in a very small quantity or degree

we had little more than we needed to survive in the wilderness

Synonyms & Similar Words

• slightly
• nominally
• just
• a trifle
• negligibly
• a bit
• barely
• scarcely
• marginally
• minimally
• meagerly
• scantily
• hardly

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• very
• something
• far
• most
• extra
• too
• much
• so
• extremely
• significantly
• especially
• considerably
• particularly
• substantially
• highly
• real
• exceedingly
• heavily
• terribly
• greatly
• super
• awfully
• entirely
• mighty
• right
• full
• completely
• extensively
• totally
• purely
• thoroughly
• deadly
• rattling
• utterly
• mightily
• mortally
• exceptionally
• frightfully
• noticeably
• eminently
• jolly
• awful
• appreciably
• beastly
• palpably
• whacking
• abundantly
• generously
• liberally
• discernibly
• handsomely
• hugely
• plentifully
• monstrously
• monumentally
• astronomically
• grandly

2

as in rarely

not often

he's been studying very little for the bar exam

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rarely
• seldom
• infrequently
• sporadically
• never
• sometimes
• once in a blue moon
• occasionally
• irregularly
• now and then
• ne'er
• episodically

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• often
• frequently
• usually
• generally
• oft
• oftentimes
• ordinarily
• always
• routinely
• customarily
• ever
• habitually
• forever
• constantly
• invariably
• continually
• continuously
• endlessly
• perpetually
• eternally
• repeatedly
• chronically
• perennially
• everlastingly
• unceasingly
• evermore
• recurrently

little

3 of 3

noun

as in bit

a very small amount

there's just a little of the pie left

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bit
• glimmer
• sprinkling
• splash
• shred
• hint
• speck
• tad
• touch
• lick
• handful
• spark
• trace
• particle
• dab
• ounce
• sliver
• smack
• smidgen
• mite
• ray
• streak
• crumb
• suspicion
• peanuts
• scintilla
• smell
• dram
• spatter
• minimum
• pinch
• shade
• spot
• bite
• fleck
• strain
• portion
• scruple
• nip
• skosh
• dash
• shadow
• ace
• soupçon
• drop
• dose
• drop in the bucket
• grain
• part
• taste
• modicum
• whit
• snap
• driblet
• semblance
• molecule
• iota
• jot
• section
• vestige
• syllable
• mote
• dot
• nibble
• patch
• tittle
• atom
• fragment
• smattering
• minim
• granule
• morsel
• scrap
• hoot
• scattering
• flyspeck
• nubbin
• flake
• splinter
• shiver
• shard
• smatter
• chip
• clipping
• tatter
• shaving
• paring
• smithereens
• shot

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• lot
• plenty
• loads
• quantity
• pile
• wealth
• heaps
• abundance
• mountain
• mass
• deal
• mess
• bundle
• bucket
• stack
• barrel
• raft
• bushel
• profusion
• volume
• wad
• peck
• fistful
• reams
• much
• excess
• boatload
• gobs
• surplus
• oodles
• scads
• lashings
• passel
• embarrassment
• overflow
• potful
• surfeit
• overabundance
• bonanza
• superabundance
• chunk
• slab
• superfluity
• overage
• oversupply
• lump
• hunk
• overkill
• overmuch

Synonym Chooser

How is the word little distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of little are diminutive, miniature, minute, small, and tiny. While all these words mean "noticeably below average in size," little is more absolute in implication often carrying the idea of petiteness, pettiness, insignificance, or immaturity.

your pathetic little smile

When is diminutive a more appropriate choice than little?

Although the words diminutive and little have much in common, diminutive implies abnormal smallness.

diminutive bonsai plants

In what contexts can miniature take the place of little?

The synonyms miniature and little are sometimes interchangeable, but miniature applies to an exactly proportioned reproduction on a very small scale.

a dollhouse with miniature furnishings

When would minute be a good substitute for little?

The words minute and little can be used in similar contexts, but minute implies extreme smallness.

a minute amount of caffeine in the soda

How are the words small and little related?

Both small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.

a relatively small backyard

How do tiny and minute relate to one another, in the sense of little?

Tiny is an informal equivalent to minute.

tiny cracks formed in the painting

How is the word little distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of little are diminutive, miniature, minute, small, and tiny. While all these words mean "noticeably below average in size," little is more absolute in implication often carrying the idea of petiteness, pettiness, insignificance, or immaturity.

your pathetic little smile

When is diminutive a more appropriate choice than little?

Although the words diminutive and little have much in common, diminutive implies abnormal smallness.

diminutive bonsai plants

In what contexts can miniature take the place of little?

The synonyms miniature and little are sometimes interchangeable, but miniature applies to an exactly proportioned reproduction on a very small scale.

a dollhouse with miniature furnishings

When would minute be a good substitute for little?

The words minute and little can be used in similar contexts, but minute implies extreme smallness.

a minute amount of caffeine in the soda

How are the words small and little related?

Both small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.

a relatively small backyard

How do tiny and minute relate to one another, in the sense of little?

Tiny is an informal equivalent to minute.

tiny cracks formed in the painting

How is the word little distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of little are diminutive, miniature, minute, small, and tiny. While all these words mean "noticeably below average in size," little is more absolute in implication often carrying the idea of petiteness, pettiness, insignificance, or immaturity.

your pathetic little smile

When is diminutive a more appropriate choice than little?

Although the words diminutive and little have much in common, diminutive implies abnormal smallness.

diminutive bonsai plants

In what contexts can miniature take the place of little?

The synonyms miniature and little are sometimes interchangeable, but miniature applies to an exactly proportioned reproduction on a very small scale.

a dollhouse with miniature furnishings

When would minute be a good substitute for little?

The words minute and little can be used in similar contexts, but minute implies extreme smallness.

a minute amount of caffeine in the soda

How are the words small and little related?

Both small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.

a relatively small backyard

How do tiny and minute relate to one another, in the sense of little?

Tiny is an informal equivalent to minute.

tiny cracks formed in the painting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of little

Adjective

Jane tries to give it a bit of meta humor, milking laughs from throwing money at Juicy and doing little jazz hands. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2026

Tourlas started with a nerve block to temporarily reduce Jack's pain, then prescribed an oral medication that had little effect. —Kerry Breen, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2026

Adverb

By the end of summer 2024, there was little more to argue about how a trial should proceed; the judge had already set a trial date in January 2025. —Joe Mahr, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2026

But some scientists are wondering whether novel or little-understood climate dynamics could help explain the length, intensity and breadth of this month’s event. —Evan Bush, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2026

Noun

Help littles understand the concept of gratitude and paying it forward in a fun way. —Melissa Willets, Parents, 25 Dec. 2025

All of us — grownups, littles and bigs — send our love and wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. —Caleb Harris, Austin American Statesman, 17 Dec. 2025

Phrases Containing little

• Chicken Little
• a little
• little bitty
• little by little
• little guy
• little man