English

A rust mite

Noun

mite ‎(plural mites)

1. A minute arachnid, of the order Acarina, of which there are many species; as, the cheese mite, sugar mite, harvest mite, etc. See Acarina.
2. A small coin formerly circulated in England, rated at about a third of a farthing.
   • 1803, William Blake, Auguries of Innocence

     One mite wrung from the lab'rer's hands

     Shall buy and sell the miser's lands;

3. A lepton, a small coin used in Palestine in the time of Christ.
4. A small weight; one twentieth of a grain.
5. Anything very small; a minute object; a very little quantity or particle. Sometimes used adverbially.
   • 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 5, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:

     “Well,” I says, “I cal'late a body could get used to Tophet if he stayed there long enough.” ¶ She flared up; the least mite of a slam at Doctor Wool was enough to set her going.

   • 1959, Frances Cavanah, Abe Lincoln Gets His Chance, Project Gutenberg, :

     "Those trousers are a mite too big, but you'll soon grow into them."

Synonyms

• (small amount): see also Wikisaurus:modicum.

Derived terms

• widow's mite

Translations

Verb

mite

1. Eye dialect spelling of might.

Anagrams

• emit
• item
• time

Au

Noun

mite

1. woman

References

• transnewguinea.org, citing D. C. Laycock, Languages of the Lumi Subdistrict (West Sepik District), New Guinea (1968), Oceanic Linguistics, 7 (1): 36-66

Catalan

Pronunciation

• (Balearic) IPA^(key): /ˈmi.tə/
• (Central) IPA^(key): /ˈmi.tə/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /ˈmi.te/

Noun

mite m ‎(plural mites)

1. myth

French

Etymology

Middle French, from Old French mitte ‎(“kind of insect which gnaws on cloth or cheese”), from Middle Dutch mīte ‎(“moth, mite”), ult. from Proto-Germanic *mītǭ ‎(“biting insect”, literally “cutter”). Akin to Old English mīte ‎(“mite, tiny insect”), Old High German mīza ‎(“mite”), Danish mide ‎(“mite”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mit/

Noun

mite f ‎(plural mites)

1. mite (arachnid)
2. moth, particularly one whose larva destroys something stored by humans

Derived terms

• antimite

Related terms

• chenille f
• papillon m
• teigne f ‎(“clothes moth”)
• pyrale f ‎(“meal moth”)

Verb

mite

1. first-person singular present indicative of miter
2. third-person singular present indicative of miter
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of miter
4. first-person singular present subjunctive of miter
5. second-person singular imperative of miter

Anagrams

• émit, émît

Italian

Adjective

mite m, f ‎(masculine and feminine plural miti)

1. mild
2. moderate (price)
3. balmy (climate)
4. meek (animal)

Anagrams

• temi

Latin

Adjective

mīte

1. nominative neuter singular of mītis
2. accusative neuter singular of mītis
3. vocative neuter singular of mītis

References

• mite in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• mite in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers

Norman

Etymology

From Old French mitte ‎(“kind of insect which gnaws on cloth or cheese”), from Middle Dutch mīte ‎(“moth, mite”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *mītǭ ‎(“biting insect”, literally “cutter”).

Noun

mite f ‎(plural mites)

1. (Jersey) mite

Volapük

Noun

mite

1. dative singular of mit