Dwarf Definition

dwôrf

dwarfed, dwarfing, dwarfs, dwarves

noun

dwarfs

A person with a usually genetic disorder resulting in atypically short stature and often disproportionate limbs.

American Heritage Medicine

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

Webster's New World

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

Webster's New World

A star of relatively small size or mass and low luminosity.

Webster's New World

A dwarf star.

American Heritage

Synonyms:

Antonyms:

Antonyms:
giant

verb

dwarfed, dwarfing, dwarfs

To keep from growing to full natural size.

Webster's New World

To make small or insignificant.

Webster's New World

To become stunted or dwarfed.

Webster's New World

To make seem small by comparison.

Webster's New World

To render (much) smaller, turn into a dwarf (version).

Wiktionary

Synonyms:

Antonyms:

adjective

Much smaller than the usual one of its kind.

Webster's New World

Undersized; stunted.

Webster's New World

(especially in botany) Miniature.

The specimen is a very dwarf form of the plant.

It is possible to grow the plants as dwarf as one desires.

Wiktionary

Synonyms:

Antonyms:

Antonyms:
big
giant
huge
large

Other Word Forms of Dwarf

Noun

Singular:

dwarf

Plural:

dwarves, dwarfs

Origin of Dwarf

From Middle English dwerf, dwergh, dwerw, dwerȝ, from Old English dweorh, dweorg (“dwarf”), from Proto-Germanic *dwergaz, cognate with Old High German twerc (German Zwerg), Old Norse dvergr (Swedish dvärg), Old Frisian dwirg, Middle Low German dwerch, dwarch, twerg (Low German Dwarg, Dwarch), Middle Dutch dwerch, dworch (Dutch dwerg). The Germanic word is perhaps from a Proto-Indo-European *dʰwer- (“harm, deceive”); compare Sanskrit ध्वरति (dhvárati, “to bend, hurt”), ध्वरस् (dhvarás, “class of female demons”).

From Wiktionary
The Modern English noun has undergone complex phonetic changes. The form dwarf is the regular continuation of dweorg, but the plural dweorgas would have given rise to dwarrows and the oblique stem dweorge- would have lead to dwery. These forms are sometimes found as the nominative singular in Middle English texts and in English dialects. A parallel case is that of Old English burg giving burgh, borough, burrow, bury.

From Wiktionary
Middle English dwerf from Old English dweorh

From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition