dinky

adjective

din·​ky ˈdiŋ-kē 

dinkier; dinkiest

: overly or unattractively small

drives a dinky little car

also, British : attractively small : cute

Synonyms

• bantam
• diminutive
• dwarfish
• fine
• half-pint
• Lilliputian
• little
• pint-size
• pint-sized
• pocket
• pocket-size
• pocket-sized
• puny
• pygmy
• shrimpy
• slight
• small
• smallish
• subnormal
• toylike
• undersized
• undersize

Examples of dinky in a Sentence

I used to drive a dinky little car.

recent college graduates crowding into a dinky New York City apartment

Recent Examples on the Web

The path leads to Saint Paul de Vence's dinky cemetery, the final resting place of the Maeghts, Chagall, and French actor Georges Géret. —Alexandra Zagalsky, theweek, 1 Nov. 2024

Cordless vacuums are notorious for having dinky batteries that die after a few minutes of cleaning, but one that wowed us with its lasting power is on sale at Amazon today. —Clint Davis, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024

Apple is also likely to release an even dinkier version of its desktop computer, the Mac Mini, which will likely come with Apple’s new M4 chip. —Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 3 Sep. 2024

She’s slipped from being a rom-com queen to leading a procedural to dithering with a shift toward action in projects that have felt increasingly dinky and downmarket, considering what she’s proven capable of. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 24 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Scots dink neat

First Known Use

1880, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

dinky

adjective

din·​ky ˈdiŋ-kē 

dinkier; dinkiest

: very small and unimpressive

a dinky room