parvus

Latin

Etymology

Apparently metathesized from Proto-Italic *pauros (“few, small”) (compare paulus from *paurelos), from *peh₂urós, suffixed form of *peh₂w-. Cognate with Ancient Greek παῦρος (paûros), Old Saxon fā (“few”), Old High German fao, fō (“few, little”), Old Norse fár (“few”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌿𐍃 (faus, “few”), Old English fēawa, fēawe, fēa (“few”), Latin paucus (“little, few”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈpar.wus/, [ˈpar.wʊs]

• Audio (Classical)

  (file)

Adjective

parvus (feminine parva, neuter parvum); first/second declension

1. small, little, cheap
2. ignorable, unimportant

Inflection

First/second declension.

Number	Singular				Plural
Case / Gender	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter		Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
nominative	parvus	parva	parvum		parvī	parvae	parva
genitive	parvī	parvae	parvī		parvōrum	parvārum	parvōrum
dative	parvō		parvō		parvīs
accusative	parvum	parvam	parvum		parvōs	parvās	parva
ablative	parvō	parvā	parvō		parvīs
vocative	parve	parva	parvum		parvī	parvae	parva

This adjective has irregular comparative and superlative degrees.

• comparative: minor, superlative: minimus, minumus

Synonyms

• minutus

Antonyms

• grandis
• magnus

Derived terms

• parvulus
• paulus

Descendants

• Spanish: parvo, párvulo
• Portuguese: parvo
• Romanian pârv

References

• parvus in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• parvus in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• parvus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
• parvus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • from youth up: a puero (is), a parvo (is), a parvulo (is)
    
  • important results are often produced by trivial causes: ex parvis saepe magnarum rerum momenta pendent
    
  • a deep, high, thin, moderate voice: vox gravis, acuta, parva, mediocris
    
  • to be satisfied with a little: paucis, parvo contentum esse
    
  • to buy cheaply: parvo, vili pretio or bene emere
    
  • a thing costs much, little: aliquid magno, parvo stat, constat