MINUTE

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does minute mean? 

• MINUTE (noun)
  The noun MINUTE has 6 senses:

1. a unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour

2. an indefinitely short time

3. a particular point in time

4. a unit of angular distance equal to a 60th of a degree

5. a short note

6. distance measured by the time taken to cover it

  Familiarity information: MINUTE used as a noun is common.

• MINUTE (adjective)
  The adjective MINUTE has 2 senses:

1. infinitely or immeasurably small

2. characterized by painstaking care and detailed examination

  Familiarity information: MINUTE used as an adjective is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MINUTE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A unit of time equal to 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

min; minute

Context example:

he ran a 4 minute mile

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

time unit; unit of time (a unit for measuring time periods)

Meronyms (parts of "minute"):

s; sec; second (1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites)

Holonyms ("minute" is a part of...):

60 minutes; hour; hr (a period of time equal to 1/24th of a day)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An indefinitely short time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

bit; minute; mo; moment; second

Context example:

in just a bit

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

time (an indefinite period (usually marked by specific attributes or activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "minute"):

blink of an eye; flash; heartbeat; instant; jiffy; New York minute; split second; trice; twinkling; wink (a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat))

Sense 3

Meaning:

A particular point in time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

instant; minute; moment; second

Context example:

the moment he arrived the party began

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

point; point in time (an instant of time)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "minute"):

climax; culmination (the decisive moment in a novel or play)

eleventh hour; last minute (the latest possible moment)

moment of truth (a crucial moment on which much depends)

moment of truth (the moment in a bullfight when the matador kills the bull)

pinpoint (a very brief moment)

time (a suitable moment)

psychological moment (the most appropriate time for achieving a desired effect)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A unit of angular distance equal to a 60th of a degree

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

arcminute; minute; minute of arc

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

angular unit (a unit of measurement for angles)

Meronyms (parts of "minute"):

arcsecond; second (a 60th part of a minute of arc)

Holonyms ("minute" is a part of...):

arcdegree; degree (a measure for arcs and angles)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A short note

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Context example:

the secretary keeps the minutes of the meeting

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

note (a brief written record)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Distance measured by the time taken to cover it

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

hour; minute

Context example:

its just 10 minutes away

Hypernyms ("minute" is a kind of...):

distance (the property created by the space between two objects or points)

• MINUTE (adjective)

Comparative: minuter   
Superlative: minutest   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Infinitely or immeasurably small

Synonyms:

infinitesimal; minute

Context example:

reduced to a microscopic scale

Similar:

little; small (limited or below average in number or quantity or magnitude or extent)

Derivation:

minuteness (the property of being very small in size)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Characterized by painstaking care and detailed examination

Synonyms:

minute; narrow

Context example:

an exact and minute report

Similar:

careful (exercising caution or showing care or attention)

Derivation:

minuteness (great precision; painstaking attention to details)

 Context examples 

This is a fun and productive month, so enjoy every minute of it.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

"Wait a minute!" called the Scarecrow.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

A great tumult succeeded for some minutes, during which Miss Miller repeatedly exclaimed, "Silence!" and "Order!"

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

Woke up from few minutes' sleep by hearing a cry, seemingly outside my port. Could see nothing in fog. Rushed on deck, and ran against mate.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

I shall have done in five minutes.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

He stood staring after her for a minute, then returned to himself and to me.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

It is possible, however, that I may have something better before very many minutes are over, for this is one of my clients, or I am much mistaken.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

McArdle was plunged in thought for some minutes.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

She was right; in a few minutes he appeared, and, making his way through the then thinning rows, spoke with like calm politeness to Mrs. Allen and her friend.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

An electrocardiographic finding of an organized, regular atrial rhythm with atrial rate of 240-340 beats per minute.

(Atrial Flutter by ECG Finding, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)