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minor Definition

mi·nor (mī′nər)

adjective

    1. lesser in size, amount, number, or extent
    2. lesser in importance or rank
  2. under full legal age (usually either eighteen or twenty-one years)
  3. Archaic constituting the minority: said of a party, etc.
  4. sad; melancholy; plaintive: from the identification in Occidental music of the minor key with such qualities
  5. ☆ Educ. designating or of a field of study in which students specialize, but less so than in their major
  6. Music
    1. designating an imperfect interval smaller than the corresponding major interval by a semitone
    2. characterized by minor intervals, scales, etc. the minor key
    3. designating a triad having a minor third
    4. based on the scale pattern of the minor mode

Etymology: ME menour < L minor < IE *minu-, small < base *mei-, to lessen > Gr meiōn, less, ON minni, smaller

intransitive verb

☆ Educ. to make some subject one's minor field of study to minor in art

noun

  1. a person under full legal age, who has not yet acquired all civil rights
  2. ☆ Educ. a minor subject or field of study
  3. Music a minor interval, key, etc.

minor Idioms

the minors

☆

the minor leagues, esp. in baseball

minor Synonyms

minor

modif.

secondary, lesser, insignificant; see trivial, unimportant.

minor Synonyms

minor

n.

person under eighteen, person under twenty-one, underage person, boy, girl, child, infant, little one, lad, slip, spring, schoolboy, schoolgirl, lassie, miss, maid; see also youth 3.

minor Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • protect: All the necessary technology is in place to protect minors from viewing such material.
  • prevent: Without doubt it can be established that security measures can be put in place to prevent minors from viewing.

Adjective modifier

  • unaccompanied: Local immigration officers are obliged to notify the local authority of the arrival of an unaccompanied minor.
  • sharp: They're going get a symphony orchestra to back me up with stuff that I wrote in F sharp minor and stuff.
  • flat: AUGUST 2006 Listen to Ll&#375;r Williams Chopin - Scherzo in B flat minor, Op.

Modifies a noun

  • amendment: Minor amendments of the Companies Act 1985 SCHEDULE 20.
  • ailment: This is less likely in adults, however having a minor ailment can reduce a person's seizure threshold, making seizures more likely.
  • injury: Many local GPs provide sessions handling minor injuries in A&E.
  • modification: Most designers start by making minor modifications to the designs of others.
  • adjustment: Note there were minor adjustments in the official English text on Thursday January 19, 2006.
  • alteration: Planning Permission Most minor alterations to homes don't need planning permission.

Used with adjective complement

appear: What appears minor in isolation, may be the tip of a trend that can be avoided, and a life saved.

Modifying Another Word

  • relatively: Relatively minor symptoms affect the eyes in about half of people with Graves ' disease.
  • comparatively: Faroukh Ruzimatov is particularly good but is in a comparatively minor role.
  • fairly: Some fairly minor amendments to the voluntary Statements of Practice had been made.
  • however: Any person involved in an accident that affects the eyes, however minor, must be seen by a doctor.
  • apparently: Types of incidents vary from the extremely serious to the apparently minor.
  • very: First, the cancer charities are very minor buyers of services.

Preposition: in

  • comparison: There are other aspects to the gameplay but they are minor in comparison and even a bit irritating at times.
  • king: George had now died, leaving his son John as a minor in the king 's ward.