dwarf

B2 Topic:Actions & Processes

US /dwɔɹf/ UK /dwɔːf/ See IPA manual

Freq #7973

Meanings

1

verb
To be so much bigger than something else that it makes it look small.

The new skyscraper dwarfs every other building in the city.
2

noun
In stories and legends, a small human-like creature, often skilled at making things and mining.

In the tale, seven dwarfs lived together in a tiny cottage.
3

noun
A plant, animal, or thing that is much smaller than usual for its kind.

He grows a dwarf apple tree on his balcony.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to be so much bigger than... overshadow shadow

3 noun · a plant, animal, or thing... runt

Word family

Forms dwarfeddwarfingdwarfsdwarves

Derived forms bedwarfdurgandurgydwarf-holderdwarfagedwarfdomdwarfendwarferdwarfessdwarfettedwarfifydwarfish

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

white dwarf
a small, extremely dense star with low luminosity

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English dwergh, dwerw, dwerf, from Old English dweorg, from Proto-West Germanic *dwerg, from Proto-Germanic *dwergaz. Cognate with Scots droich, dwerch (“dwarf, midget”); Old High German twerc (German, Luxembourgish Zwerg (“dwarf”)); Old Norse dvergr (Danish dværg (“dwarf, midget”), Faroese dvørgur (“dwarf”), Icelandic dvergur (“dwarf”), Norwegian Bokmål dverg (“dwarf”), Norwegian Nynorsk dverg, verg (“dwarf”), Swedish dvärg (“dwarf”)); Old Frisian dwirg (Saterland Frisian Dwärch (“dwarf”), West Frisian dwerch (“dwarf”)); Middle Low German dwerch, dwarch, twerg (German Low German D…

dwergh Middle English dweorg Old English *dwerg Proto-West Germanic *dwergaz Proto-Germanic

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Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# dwarf

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** verb, noun
**IPA (US):** /dwɔɹf/
**IPA (UK):** /dwɔːf/
**Frequency rank:** 7973

## Meanings
1. To be so much bigger than something else that it makes it look small.
2. In stories and legends, a small human-like creature, often skilled at making things and mining.
3. A plant, animal, or thing that is much smaller than usual for its kind.

## Examples
- The new skyscraper dwarfs every other building in the city.
- In the tale, seven dwarfs lived together in a tiny cottage.
- He grows a dwarf apple tree on his balcony.

## Derived Forms
- bedwarf
- durgan
- durgy
- dwarf-holder
- dwarfage
- dwarfdom
- dwarfen
- dwarfer
- dwarfess
- dwarfette
- dwarfify
- dwarfish

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dwergh
- Root: dweorg
- Root: *dwerg
- Root: *dwergaz

## Etymology
From Middle English dwergh, dwerw, dwerf, from Old English dweorg, from Proto-West Germanic *dwerg, from Proto-Germanic *dwergaz. Cognate with Scots droich, dwerch (“dwarf, midget”); Old High German twerc (German, Luxembourgish Zwerg (“dwarf”)); Old Norse dvergr (Danish dværg (“dwarf, midget”), Faroese dvørgur (“dwarf”), Icelandic dvergur (“dwarf”), Norwegian Bokmål dverg (“dwarf”), Norwegian Nynorsk dverg, verg (“dwarf”), Swedish dvärg (“dwarf”)); Old Frisian dwirg (Saterland Frisian Dwärch (“dwarf”), West Frisian dwerch (“dwarf”)); Middle Low German dwerch, dwarch, twerg (German Low German D…

## AI Etymology
Dwarf comes from Middle English dwergh, dwerw, dwerf, from Old English dweorg, from Proto-West Germanic *dwerg, from Proto-Germanic *dwergaz. In current use, the main senses are “To be so much bigger than something else that it makes it look small” and “In stories and legends, a small human-like creature, often skilled at making things and mining”.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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