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dwarfishness

   Also found in: Medical, Legal, Financial, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
dwarf  (dwôrf)
n. pl. dwarfs or dwarves (dwôrvz)
1.
a. An abnormally small person, often having limbs and features atypically proportioned or formed.
b. An atypically small animal or plant.
2. A small creature resembling a human, often ugly, appearing in legends and fairy tales.
3. A dwarf star.
v. dwarfed, dwarf·ing, dwarfs
v.tr.
1. To check the natural growth or development of; stunt: "The oaks were dwarfed from lack of moisture" (John Steinbeck).
2. To cause to appear small by comparison: "Together these two big men dwarfed the tiny Broadway office" (Saul Bellow).
v.intr.
To become stunted or grow smaller.

[Middle English dwerf, from Old English dweorh.]

dwarfish adj.
dwarfish·ness n.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.dwarfishness - smallness of stature
littleness, smallness - the property of having a relatively small size


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A diminutive, Naipaul's use of it emphasizes the implied limitation in the "little warrior's" struggle, his vanity, his striking out against a neurotic certainty of his own moral dwarfishness.
 
 
 
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