— minuscular , adj.
/min"euh skyoohl', mi nus"kyoohl/ , adj.
1. very small.
2. (of letters or writing) small; not capital.
3. written in such letters (opposed to majuscule ).
n.
4. a minuscule letter.
5. a small cursive script developed in the 7th century A.D. from the uncial, which it afterward superseded.
[ 1695-1705; minusculus smallish. See MINUS, -CULE 1 ]
Usage . MINUSCULE, from Latin minus meaning "less," has frequently come to be spelled MINISCULE, perhaps under the influence of the prefix mini- in the sense "of a small size." Although this newer spelling is criticized by many, it occurs with such frequency in edited writing that some consider it a variant spelling rather than a misspelling.