Boozer
02-28-05, 04:31PM
infinitesimal • \in-fin-ih-TESS-uh-mul\ • adjective
1 : taking on values arbitrarily close to but greater than zero
*2 : immeasurably or incalculably small
Example sentence:
The days get longer in seemingly infinitesimal increments, but by the end of February we've gained two whole hours of sunlight since the winter solstice.
Did you know?
"Infinite," as you probably know, means "endless" or "extending indefinitely." It is ultimately from Latin "infinitus," the opposite of "finitus," meaning "finite." The notion of smallness in "infinitesimal" derives from the mathematical concept that a quantity can be divided endlessly; no matter how small, it can be subdivided into yet smaller fractions, or "infinitesimals." The concept was still in its infancy in 1710 when Irish philosopher George Berkeley observed that some people "assert there are infinitesimals of infinitesimals of infinitesimals, etc., without ever coming to an end." He used the adjective in a mathematical sense, too, referring to "infinitesimal parts of finite lines." Less than a quarter century later, the adjective had acquired a general sense applicable to anything too small to be measured.
*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
Unfortunately, I have an infinitesimal amount of experience when it comes to relationships.
1 : taking on values arbitrarily close to but greater than zero
*2 : immeasurably or incalculably small
Example sentence:
The days get longer in seemingly infinitesimal increments, but by the end of February we've gained two whole hours of sunlight since the winter solstice.
Did you know?
"Infinite," as you probably know, means "endless" or "extending indefinitely." It is ultimately from Latin "infinitus," the opposite of "finitus," meaning "finite." The notion of smallness in "infinitesimal" derives from the mathematical concept that a quantity can be divided endlessly; no matter how small, it can be subdivided into yet smaller fractions, or "infinitesimals." The concept was still in its infancy in 1710 when Irish philosopher George Berkeley observed that some people "assert there are infinitesimals of infinitesimals of infinitesimals, etc., without ever coming to an end." He used the adjective in a mathematical sense, too, referring to "infinitesimal parts of finite lines." Less than a quarter century later, the adjective had acquired a general sense applicable to anything too small to be measured.
*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
Unfortunately, I have an infinitesimal amount of experience when it comes to relationships.