mite

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   any of numerous minute arachnids, many of which live as parasites on animals or plants

   The veterinarian found a mite in the skin sample taken from the dog's ear.

2. 2
   noun

   a very small amount or degree

   The soup tasted a mite too salty after it had reduced.

3. 3
   noun

   a small, weak, or pitiable person or creature, especially a child

   The tired little mite fell asleep before the nurse finished the story.

4. 4
   noun

   a coin or contribution of very small value, now chiefly in the phrase a widow's mite

   Although she had little money, she still offered her mite to the relief fund.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Mite, the name of the tiny arachnid, comes from Old English mīte and is Germanic in origin. A late Middle English mite was a small Flemish copper coin, from Middle Dutch mīte, and was probably related to the same Germanic word. The modern use in phrases such as “poor little mite” and the phrase “the widow’s mite” reflect this association with smallness.

The arachnid sense descends from Old English mite, probably from a Germanic base meaning either "cutter" (from its bite) or "small thing." The small-amount and small-coin senses came through Middle English from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German mite, the name of a tiny Flemish coin; the shared idea is extreme smallness.

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary