petite meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

petite

adj

/pəˈtiːt/

Etymology Borrowed from French petite f, feminine of petit m (“small, little”).

Especially, Of a woman Fairly short and of slim build.

Business, Clothing, Fashion, Lifestyle, Manufacturing, Textiles Of small size; intended for small-framed adult women.

Small, little; insignificant; petty.

The Earth, the Sun, and Stars, what things are they in nature? are they petite things not worth our notice, or grand and worthy of consideration?1662, Galileo Galilei, translated by Thomas Salisbury, Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems:

Derived terms: petite bourgeoisie, petite perception
Related terms: petite amie, petitely, petiteness

petite

noun

Etymology Borrowed from French petite f, feminine of petit m (“small, little”).

Biology, Genetics, Medicine, Natural sciences, Sciences A mutant first discovered in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, forming small colonies when grown in the presence of fermentable carbon sources such as glucose.

The primary structure of the mitochondrial genomes of these petites had been previously determined […]2005, Giorgio Bernardi, Structural and Evolutionary Genomics, page 39: