Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

petite

/pəˈtiːt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.43 in modern English

Syllables: pe-tite
IPA: /pəˈtiːt/

8

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

2

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Fairly short and of slim build.

adj

Of small size; intended for small-framed adult women.

adj

Small, little; insignificant; petty.

noun

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

name

Example Sentences

"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?"
"The primary structure of the mitochondrial genomes of these petites had been previously determined […]"

Etymology

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

Origin

Source language: French

Word Breakdown

Root: petite

Inflected Forms

more petite (comparative) most petite (superlative) petites (plural)

Phrases

petite bourgeoisie petite perception petite amie

Frequently Paired Words

petite amie petitely petiteness

Synonyms

bantam diminutive lilliputian midget tiny flyspeck

Rhymes With

street meet st eat complete beat feet sweet heat seat treat meat

Questions

How do you pronounce petite?: The recorded pronunciation is /pəˈtiːt/.
What does petite mean?: Fairly short and of slim build.
Where does petite come from?: It is traced to French.

How to pronounce petite

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “petite”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/pəˈtiːt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “petite”.
Repeat and practice — Say “petite” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.