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Glite Dictionary
minuscular

minuscular

9.9
Small, flowing handwriting style used in Europe in the early Middle Ages
  • adjective
  • /ˈmɪnəskjələr/
  • Specialized
translation icon : minúscula
  • In examining medieval documents, we noticed that the minuscular letters were smaller and more cursive than the earlier uncial forms.

Examples

  • Scholars deciphered the ancient manuscript, which was written in a distinctive minuscular hand.

  • The minuscular style made texts easier to copy and read than their earlier, uncial counterparts.

  • The evolution of minuscular scripts marked a significant development in early medieval European writing.

  • The manuscript was written in a minuscular style.

  • Many ancient texts feature minuscular letters.

  • The text in the ancient book was written in a beautiful minuscular script that flowed gracefully across the page.

  • During the 8th century, scribes preferred minuscular writing for its clarity and ease of reproduction.

Synonyms

minuscule
vsminuscular
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Relating to a small cursive script used in medieval times

is identical in meaning but denotes an alternate form or spelling

Surface Forms

minuscular positive

Morphology

minuscular = minuscule (semi-transparent) = minuscule + ar

The word is clearly built from 'minuscule' plus an adjectival suffix, but the specialized paleographic sense is not fully predictable for all learners.

Etymology

Minuscular comes from the Latin minus meaning 'less' or 'smaller' and is like the English word minuscule, so it describes a small, compact style of handwriting that medieval scribes used to copy books.