petite

adjective

Definition of petitenext
as in diminutive
having a small and thin body
—usually used to describe a woman or girl She's petite and has short black hair. a petite young woman

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of petite Glamour editors vetted a range of options, including ones of varying lengths for petite and tall women. — Malia Griggs, Glamour, 21 Sep. 2026 The pants are buttery-soft, with a super-flattering, wide-leg silhouette that elongates my petite frame. — Reece Andavolgyi, InStyle, 20 Sep. 2026 My fellow petite Amazon shoppers turned me on to this cap-sleeve top and cropped pants set. — Emily Weaver, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2026 The restaurants have made menu adjustments such as offering half-sized pasta dishes and petite cuts of steak in some locations. — Jennifer Bradley Franklin, USA Today, 17 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for petite
Recent Examples of Synonyms for petite
  1. diminutive
  2. smallish
  3. mini
  4. elfin
  5. dwarf
  6. micro
  7. tiny
  8. small
Adjective
  • That said, the actress playing the diminutive vigilante — a remarkable Sneha Kumari — drums up just enough passion and intrigue to counterbalance this relatively rote unfurling.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, IndieWire, 21 Sep. 2026
  • This is a tricky proposition, as these black holes would have a lifetime as diminutive as their size.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of diminutive
Adjective
  • The walls of the smallish, modest dining room are adorned solely with promotional photos of its own food.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Shoichiro was smallish and solidly built, with a dull, pale complexion.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of smallish
Adjective
  • There’s a kitchenette with a microwave and mini fridge, which comes in handy as there is no on-site restaurant.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Sep. 2026
  • This mini version of the neat leather bow showed up in other spring 2027 shoes.
    — Jaden Thompson, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of mini
Adjective
  • Olah is a boyish, elfin prodigy who, at nineteen, met Amodei on his first visit to the Bay Area.
    — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
  • That effort also brought back the rare frosted elfin butterfly for the first time in decades.
    — Diana Stralberg, The Conversation, 17 Dec. 2025
Definition of elfin
Adjective
  • Bare-root fruit trees that produce fruit the fastest are typically dwarf or semi-dwarf varieties.
    — SJ McShane, Martha Stewart, 28 July 2026
  • Look for citrus varieties grafted onto dwarf or semi-dwarf rootstock so the citrus tree stays small and doesn’t need to be pruned or re-potted as often.
    — Leanne Potts, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 July 2026
Definition of dwarf
Adjective
  • The slow exchange with oxygen is imitated with micro-oxygenation technology — essentially, blowing bubbles through the wine.
    — Peter Hahn, Fortune, 29 Sep. 2026
  • While much of the focus on the growing vertical video/microseries category has focused on the creation of original, low-budget content, there also has been a marketplace for pre-existing fare that is edited down into micro-sized bites.
    — Michael Schneider, Variety, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of micro
Adjective
  • The daily drawing of rangoli threshold designs with rice flour is thought to feed the many souls of birds, ants, and other tiny creatures.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Sep. 2026
  • From the factory, this Asus Vivobook 14 comes with a pretty tiny 256GB internal drive, but adding a 512GB external SSD gives you twice the additional storage space.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of tiny
Adjective
  • Only about a dozen countries have active programs, including small Caribbean island states.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 3 Oct. 2026
  • The treasurer’s office says the administrative cost of processing very small payments can exceed their value.
    — Mark Lewyn, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of small

Browse Nearby Words

peters (out)
petite
petiteness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Petite.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petite. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

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