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minute¹ Definition

min·ute (min′it)

noun

  1. the sixtieth part of any of certain units; specif.,
    1. of an hour; sixty seconds
    2. of a degree of an arc; sixty seconds: symbol, ′
  2. a very short period of time; moment; instant
  3. a specific point in time
  4. a measure of the distance usually covered in a minute five minutes from downtown
    1. a note or memorandum
    2. an official record of what was said and done at a meeting, convention, etc.

Etymology: OFr < ML minuta < L (pars) minuta (prima), (first) small (part), term used by Ptolemy for the sixtieth part of a unit in his system of fractions (of the circle, radius, day, later applied also to the hour): see minute

transitive verb -·uted, -·ut·ing

  1. to time to the minute
    1. to make a minute, or memorandum, of; record
    2. to put in the minutes of a meeting, etc.

minute¹ Idioms

the minute (that)

just as soon as

up to the minute

in the latest style, fashion, etc.

minute² Definition

mi·nute (mī no̵̅o̅t′, -nyo̵̅o̅t′; -mi-)

adjective

  1. very small; tiny
  2. of little importance or significance; petty; trifling
  3. of, characterized by, or attentive to tiny details; exact; precise

Etymology: ME < L minutus, little, small, pp. of minuere, to lessen, diminish < minor: see minor

minute² Related Forms
mi·nute′·ness noun
minute Synonyms

minute

modif.

  1. Extremely small

    microscopic, diminutive, wee, tiny, atomic, miniature, puny, infinitesimal, inframicroscopic, microbic, molecular, exact, precise, pulverized, fine, exiguous, inconsiderable, teeny*, weeny*, teensy*, peewee*, itsy*, itsy-bitsy*, invisible*; see also little 1.

    Antonyms large*, huge, immense.

  2. Trivial

    immaterial, nonessential, paltry; see trivial, unimportant.

  3. Exact

    particular, circumstantial, specialized; see detailed, elaborate 2. See syn. study at small.

minute Synonyms

minute

n.

  1. The sixtieth part of an hour

    sixty seconds, unit of time, measure of time, space of time; see time 1.

  2. A brief time

    short time, second, trice, flash, twinkling, breath, jiffy*, bat of an eye*, shake of a lamb's tail*, couple of humps*, tick*, twink*; see also instant, moment 1, time 2.

    Antonyms eternity*, long time, forever*.

up to the minute*

  1. modern, contemporary, in the latest style, up to date; see fashionable.

  2. current, prompt, recent;

minute Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • wait: We were taken straight to the airport and only waited a few minutes for the courtesy bus on our return.
  • locate: Located 10 minutes from downtown, yet harboring on a natural reserve, Vltava Ridge Estate provides the perfect investment opportunity.
  • spend: Turned and backed up to the water point where we spent 15 minutes filling our tank.
  • arrive: You need to arrive 10-15 minutes before the start of your interview.
  • take: Take a few minutes to ' walk ' the route with your family.

Preposition: on

  • clock: Grieves then had the best chance of the game with 68 minutes on the clock.

Adjective modifier

  • few: A few minutes later he's got his head down, writing.
  • last: Lin has had two buyers, who have both pulled out at the last minute due to problems further down their chains.

Modifies a noun

  • walk: The church is about a 15 minute walk from the main Brunel campus.
  • duration: Pilot 120 minutes followed by 66 episodes of 60 minute duration.
  • drive: By Air London Heathrow Airport is a 30 minute drive away.
  • interval: Trains run at 45 minute intervals from 09.30 to 15.30 ( last train ).

Noun used with modifier

  • forty-five: It's very simple for even non-gamers to pick up and games don't take much longer than forty-five minutes to an hour.
  • forty: After forty minutes or so, we could see the corner of the Colosseum peering above the modern buildings.
  • up-to-the: The organization provides an up-to-the minute financial comparison service allowing customers to select from all suitable products from all relevant providers.
  • eleven: Albion made a switch eleven minutes in when McQuilken replaced McMenamin.

Possessives

  • silence: There will be a minute's silence in memory of Robin Haslam before the finals start on Saturday.
  • walk: Our guide will escort you into town ( about 10 minutes ' level walk ).

Preposition: before

  • kick-off: Bury again treated us to queuing about 50 minutes before kick-off and there seemed a lot then.

Preposition: of

  • meeting: Minutes of the previous meeting There were no corrections to the minutes.
minute Quotes

  I have two luxuries to brood over in my walks, your loveliness and the hour of my death.O that I could have possession of them both in the same minute.

—Keats,John

   Enormous Changes at the Last Minute.

—Paley, Grace ne¤  e  Goodside

The trouble with me is, I always have to read that stuff by myself. If an actor reads it out, I hardly listen. I keep worrying about whether he's going to do something phoney every minute.

—Salinger,J(erome) D(avid)

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with Kingsönor lose the common touch, If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds' worth of distance run, Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it. Andöwhich is moreöyou'll be a Man, my son!

—Kipling, (Joseph) Rudyard

Let there pass A minute, ten, ten trillion; but the blaze Is infinite, eternal: this is death. To die and know it. This is the Black Widow, death.

—Lowell, RobertTraill Spence,Jr

To create is first of all to destroy†there is and can be no such thing as authentic art until the bons trucs (whereby we are taught to see and imitate on canvas and in stone and by words this so-called world) are entirely and

—cummings, e e pen name of  Edward Estlin Cummings

The horse that comes from the road, The rider, the birds that range From cloud to tumbling cloud, Minute by minute they change; A shadow of cloud on the stream Changes minute by minute; A horse-hoof slides on the brim, And a horse plashes within it; The long-legged moor-hens dive, And hens to moor-cocks call; Minute by minute they live: The stone's in the midst of all.

—Yeats,W(illiam) B(utler)

To burn a book is not to destroy it.One minute of darkness will not make us blind.

—Rushdie, (Ahmed) Salman

There's a sucker born every minute.

—Barnum, P(hineas) T(aylor)

I haven't the heart to take a minute from the men. The poor dears love it so.

—Caraway, HattieWyatt

Browse dictionary entries near minute

  1. ‹ minuscule
  2. ‹ minus sign
  3. ‹ minus
  4. ‹ Minuit
  5. ‹ minuet
  6. ‹ minuend
  7. ‹ minty
  8. ‹ mintage
  9. ‹ mint julep
  10. ‹ mint
  1. minute gun ›
  2. minute hand ›
  3. minute steak ›
  4. minutely ›
  5. minuteman ›
  6. minutes of use ›
  7. minutiae ›
  8. minx ›
  9. Minya ›
  10. minyan ›