particle

Fetched 2026-10-26 (cache).

Synonyms: article, partible, sparticle, particule, partile, partial, pastiche, pastille, partite, patible, pantile

Antonyms: article, partible, sparticle, particule, partile, partial, pastiche, pastille, partite, patible, pantile

Related words from Datamuse; suggestions, not definitions.

Noun

1. A very small piece of matter, a [[fragment]]; especially, the smallest possible part of something. {{defdate|from 14th c.}}
2. {{lb|en|physics}} Any of various physical objects making up the constituent parts of an [[atom]]; an [[elementary particle]] or [[subatomic particle]]. {{defdate|from 19th c.}}
3. {{lb|en|grammar}} A [[part of speech]] that has no inherent lexical definition but must be associated with another word to impart meaning, often a [[grammatical]] category: for example, the English word ''[[to]]'' in a [[full infinitive]] phrase (''to eat'') or ''[[O#Particle|O]]'' in a [[vocative]] phrase ([[O Canada]]), or as a [[discourse marker]] (''[[mmm]]'').
4. {{lb|en|linguistics}} A part of speech which cannot be [[inflection|inflected]].
5. {{lb|en|Christianity}} In the [[Roman Catholic]] church, a [[crumb]] of [[consecrated]] [[bread]]; also the smaller breads used in the [[communion]] of the [[laity]].
6. A little bit.

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wiktionary dump) · cached copy, not a rewrite.