Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Very small; diminutive: Used to describe something or someone that is unusually small in size or stature.
   • Aggressively spirited despite small size: Often implies a small person or thing that is feisty, energetic, or combative.

2. Noun:

   • A small breed of domestic fowl: Specifically refers to any of various small, often miniature, breeds of chicken.
   • (Informal, dated) A small but aggressive person: Used to describe a person, especially a boxer, who is small but spirited and combative.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • He was a bantam figure, but his presence commanded the room.
  • They lived in a bantam cottage at the edge of the village.

• Noun:

  • She raises bantams for their colorful eggs.
  • In his youth, he was a bantam, always ready for a fight despite his size.

Advanced Usage

• "Bantam weight": A weight class in boxing and other sports for the smallest competitors, typically between 112 and 118 pounds.
  • He won the championship in the bantam weight division.

Variants and Related Words

• Bantamweight (n): The official term for the weight class in combat sports.
  • She is the world champion bantamweight.

Synonyms

• Adjective: Diminutive, tiny, petite, miniature, small, Lilliputian.
• Noun: (For the chicken) Miniature fowl.

Different Meanings

• The primary meaning relates to small size (adjective) or a small breed of chicken (noun).
• The informal, human-centric meaning of a small, aggressive person is less common in modern usage but is the origin of the "bantamweight" boxing term.

Idioms and Phrases

• To have a bantam spirit: To be small in stature but large in courage or fighting spirit.
  • Don't underestimate her; she's got a real bantam spirit.

Adjective

1. very small
   • diminutive in stature
   • a lilliputian chest of drawers
   • her petite figure
   • tiny feet
   • the flyspeck nation of Bahrain moved toward democracy

Noun

1. any of various small breeds of fowl