Dwarf Definition

dwôrf
dwarfed, dwarfing, dwarfs, dwarves
noun
dwarfs
A person with a usually genetic disorder resulting in atypically short stature and often disproportionate limbs.
American Heritage Medicine
Any human being, animal, or plant that is much smaller than the usual one of its species.
Webster's New World
A little being in human form, usually ugly or malformed, to whom magic powers are attributed.
Webster's New World
A star of relatively small size or mass and low luminosity.
Webster's New World
A dwarf star.
American Heritage
Antonyms:
verb
dwarfed, dwarfing, dwarfs
To keep from growing to full natural size.
Webster's New World
To make small or insignificant.
Webster's New World
To become stunted or dwarfed.
Webster's New World
To make seem small by comparison.
Webster's New World

To render (much) smaller, turn into a dwarf (version).

Wiktionary
adjective
Much smaller than the usual one of its kind.
Webster's New World
Undersized; stunted.
Webster's New World

(especially in botany) Miniature.

The specimen is a very dwarf form of the plant.
It is possible to grow the plants as dwarf as one desires.
Wiktionary
Antonyms:

Other Word Forms of Dwarf

Noun

Singular:
dwarf
Plural:
dwarves, dwarfs

Origin of Dwarf

  • From Middle English dwerf, dwergh, dwerw, dwerȝ, from Old English dweorh, dweorg (“dwarf”), from Proto-Germanic *dwergaz, cognate with Old High German twerc (German Zwerg), Old Norse dvergr (Swedish dvärg), Old Frisian dwirg, Middle Low German dwerch, dwarch, twerg (Low German Dwarg, Dwarch), Middle Dutch dwerch, dworch (Dutch dwerg). The Germanic word is perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European *dʰwer- (“harm, deceive”); compare Sanskrit ध्वरति (dhvárati, “to bend, hurt”), ध्वरस् (dhvarás, “class of female demons”).

    From Wiktionary

  • The Modern English noun has undergone complex phonetic changes. The form dwarf is the regular continuation of dweorg, but the plural dweorgas would have given rise to dwarrows and the oblique stem dweorge- would have lead to dwery. These forms are sometimes found as the nominative singular in Middle English texts and in English dialects. A parallel case is that of Old English burg giving burgh, borough, burrow, bury.

    From Wiktionary

  • Middle English dwerf from Old English dweorh

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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