itty-bitty

very small, tiny

STATISTICS

IN THE PRESS

How Ants Figured Out Farming Millions of Years Before Humans. In a rain forest in South America millions of years ago, ITTY-BITTY ants with brains no bigger than a pinpoint had already figured it out.

The New York Times

Did you
know?

itty-bitty
adjective (informal)

- Tiny; esp, small and cute

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ORIGIN

1930s: from a child's form of little + bitsy (from bit + -sy).

Which is more common "itty-bitty" or "itsy-bitsy"

17.500.000 8.410.000

I have fond memories of relating this nursery rhyme, accompanied by appropriate arm-tickling, to two daughters:

Itsy bitsy spider climbed up the waterspout.
Down came the rain
and washed the spider out.
Out came the sun
and dried up all the rain
and the itsy bitsy spider climbed up the spout again.

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SYNONYMS

little bitty, teensy-weensy, bitsy, itsy-bitsy, bitty, wee, weeny, weensy

atomic, infinitesimal, miniature, minuscule, minute, microminiature, microscopic, microscopical

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