dwarf

dwarf [dwôrf]

n.

pl. dwarfs or dwarves [dwôrvz] [ME dwerf, dwergh < OE dweorg, akin to Ger zwerg < IE * dhwergh-, prob. < base * dhwer-, to trick, injure > Sans dhvarati, (he) injures]

1. any human being, animal, or plant that is much smaller than the usual one of its species

2. Folklore a little being in human form, usually ugly or malformed, to whom magic powers are attributed

3. a star of relatively small size or mass and low luminosity: see also WHITE DWARF, BLACK DWARF

vt.

1. to keep from growing to full natural size

2. to make small or insignificant

3. to make seem small by comparison

vi.

to become stunted or dwarfed

adj.

undersized; stunted

dwarfish

adj.

dwarfishness

n.

dwarfism

n.

SYN.- DWARF refers to any individual that is considerably smaller than the average for the species and sometimes implies malformation or disproportion of parts; MIDGET refers to a normally formed and proportioned, but diminutive, human being; PYGMY strictly refers to a member of any of several small-sized African or Asiatic peoples, but it is sometimes used (written pygmy) as a synonym for DWARF or MIDGET