English Explanatory Dictionary

modicum

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A modest, small, or trifling amount.

Pronunciation

/ˈmɒdɪkəm/ /ˈmɑdɪkəm/ /-də-/ En-us-modicum.mp3

Word forms

modicum modicums modica

Etymology

From Middle English modicum, from Latin modicum (“a little, a small amount”), a noun use of the neuter form of modicus (“moderate; restrained, temperate; reasonable”) + -cum (suffix forming neuter nouns). Modicus is derived from modus (“a measure; a bound, limit”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to measure”)) + -icus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). The plural form modica is derived from Latin modica.

Synonyms

iota jot tittle ace atom atomy aught bissel bit crumb glimpse dab damn dash diddly glint dot spatter drop dusting fleck glimmer hint flip flyspeck grain halfpennyworth inch lick mite modicum molecule morceau morsel mote ooch ounce particle pennyworth piece pinch relish scantling semblance scent scintilla scooch scrap scruple shred skerrick skoosh skosh sliver smattering smidge smidgen smidget smidgy smitch

Antonyms

lot abundance battalion arseload assload bellyload boatload brimful busload bucketful bucketload butt-ton bumload buttload cartload crapload deal fuckload fuckton fuckwad great deal hantle heap hecatomb helluvalot horseload lashings load mampus many mass metric fuckton metric shitload mickle mountain muckle multiplicity multitude pile ream shedload shitful shitload shitton sight slew spadeloads sum superflux ton trainload truckload tun vaultful wagonload

Related words

nothing near
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on M Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary