What does "dwarf" mean?
Dwarf: An animal or plant which is much below the ordinary size of its species or kind; especially, a diminutive human being. Note: During the Middle Ages dwarfs as well as fools shared the favor of courts and the nobility. Note: Dwarf is used adjectively in reference to anything much below the usual or normal size; as, dwarf tree; dwarf honeysuckle. Dwarf elder (Bot.), danewort. -- Dwarf wall (Arch.), a low wall, not as high as the story of a building, often used as a garden wall or fence. Gwilt.
Additional senses
- 2.To hinder from growing to the natural size; to make or keep small; to stunt. Addison. Even the most common moral ideas and affections . . . would be stunted and dwarfed, if cut off from a spiritual background. J. C. Shairp.
- 3.To become small; to diminish in size. Strange power of the world that, the moment we enter it, our great conceptions dwarf. Beaconsfield.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00