Pigmy
[ pig-mee ]
/ ˈpɪg mi /
noun, plural Pig·mies, adjective
Definition for pigmy (2 of 2)
Pygmy
or Pig·my
[ pig-mee ]
/ ˈpɪg mi /
noun, plural Pyg·mies.
adjective
(often lowercase)
of or relating to the Pygmies.
(lowercase)
of very small size, capacity, power, etc.
Origin of Pygmy
1350–1400; Middle English
pigmēis, plural of
pigmē < Latin
Pygmaeus < Greek
pygmaîos dwarfish (adj.), Pygmy (noun), equivalent to
pygm(ḗ) distance from elbow to knuckles +
-aios adj. suffix
OTHER WORDS FROM Pygmy
pyg·moid, adjective pyg·my·ish, adjective pyg·my·ism, nounExample sentences from the Web for pigmy
British Dictionary definitions for pigmy (1 of 3)
British Dictionary definitions for pigmy (2 of 3)
pygmy
pigmy
/ (ˈpɪɡmɪ) /
noun plural -mies
an abnormally undersized person
something that is a very small example of its type
a person of little importance or significance
(modifier)
of very small stature or size
Derived forms of pygmy
pygmaean or pygmean (pɪɡˈmiːən), adjectiveWord Origin for pygmy
C14
pigmeis the Pygmies, from Latin
Pygmaeus a Pygmy, from Greek
pugmaios undersized, from
pugmē fist
British Dictionary definitions for pigmy (3 of 3)
Pygmy
Pigmy
/ (ˈpɪɡmɪ) /
noun plural -mies
a member of one of the dwarf peoples of Equatorial Africa, noted for their hunting and forest culture
Medical definitions for pigmy
pygmy
[ pĭg′mē ]
n.
An individual of unusually small size.
Pygmy
A member of any of various peoples, especially found in equatorial Africa and parts of southeast Asia, having an average height less than 5 feet.
adj.
Unusually or atypically small.
Cultural definitions for pigmy
Pygmy
A member of any ethnic group in which the average height of the adult male is less than four feet, eleven inches. There are Pygmy tribes in dense rain-forest areas of central Africa, southern India, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The most widely studied Pygmies are the Mbuti of northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, who pursue a nomadic hunting and gathering subsistence (see nomadism and hunting and gathering societies), but have established complex interdependent relationships with their non-Pygmy farming neighbors.