n. 1. Abbr. M. or min. A unit of fluid measure, as: a. In the United States, 1/60 of a fluid dram (0.0616 milliliter). b. In Great Britain, 1/20 of a scruple (0.0592 milliliter). 2. Music A half note. 3. An insignificantly small portion or thing. 4. A downward vertical stroke in handwriting. [Middle English, half note, from Medieval Latin minimus, least, from Latin; see mei-2 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.