minimal
UK/ˈmɪn.ɪ.məl//ˈmɪn.ə.məl/
minimal adjective: the smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.
Adjective
minimal (comparative more minimal, superlative most minimal)
- The smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.
- With minimal effort, you won't be able to achieve all your dreams.
- Among elements of some collection, such that no other element is greater (with respect to some given partial order).
- With respect to the ordering induced by set-theoretic inclusion, the power set of the set of natural numbers has a unique minimal element: the empty set.
- Characterised by the use of simple form or structures.
- Characterised by the repetition and gradual alteration of short phrases.
Noun
minimal (plural minimals)
- Something very small; a tiny part or fragment.
- […] we seek in explaining mental phenomena and behavior always the "minimals," the little fragments of association, on which the mind is (passively) supposed to be based.1994, David Holbrook, Creativity and Popular Culture, page 37
- […] identifications with birds, fish, trees, and flowers (and occasionally as relief, with the stillness of rocks, clam shells, driftwood, and nature's minimals); […]1987, J. Golden Taylor, Western Literature Association (U.S.), A Literary History of the American West (page 451)
minimal meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali
minimal in Hindi
- the smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree
- न्यूनतम nyūntam
minimal in Tamil
- மிகச்சிறிய, சிறும, குறைந்த, சின்னஞ்சிறு, மிகச்சிறு
minimal in Urdu
- کم سے کم
minimal in Bengali
- অবম, যত্সামান্য, সূক্ষ্ম, ক্ষুদ্র, লঘিষ্ঠ, অল্পতম
More languagesFewer languages
- minimal in Malayalam
- വളരെകുറഞ്ഞ, നിസ്സാരമായ, ഈഷൽ, എള്ളോളം
Examples of minimal in a sentence
- I should determine the minimal amount of egg required to make good mayonnaise.
- The petition was so ridiculous that the house rejected it after minimal debate.
- The airstrike suffered minimal casualties because electronic-warfare aircraft were jamming the enemy air-defense radars.
Synonyms of minimal
Antonyms
Forms of minimal
| Adjective | |
|---|---|
| comparative | more minimal |
| superlative | most minimal |
| alternative abbreviation | min. |
| Noun | |
| plural | minimals |
Origin of minimal
From minimum + -al.
Words formed from minimal
- minimal brain dysfunction
- minimal change disease
- minimal ideal
- minimalisation
- minimalism
- minimalist
- minimality
- minimalization
- minimalize
- minimally
- minimal medium
- minimalness
- minimal pair
- minimal polynomial
- minimal prime
- minimal recursion semantics
- minimal state
- minimal surface
- minimal viable product
- minimal wave
- near-minimal pair
- nonminimal
- non-minimal
- postminimal
- quasiminimal
- subminimal
- ultraminimal
Phrases with minimal
Questions about minimal
- What does minimal mean?
- Minimal means the smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.
- What is minimal in Hindi?
- Minimal in Hindi is न्यूनतम (nyūntam). See Minimal meaning in Hindi.
- What part of speech is minimal?
- Minimal can be an adjective or a noun.
- How do you pronounce minimal?
- Minimal is pronounced /ˈmɪn.ɪ.məl/ (UK).
Words near minimal in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: minimal (page history and authors); minimal (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); minimal (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); minimal (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); minimal (Olam, E.K. Kurup corpus) (dataset and license). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-minimal.ogg.
Cite this entry: “minimal.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/minimal. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.