English
particle
Etymology

From , and its source, , diminutive of pars ("part, piece").

Pronunciation
  • (RP) IPA: /ˈpɑːtɪk(ə)l/
  • (America) IPA: /ˈpɑɹtɪkəl/
Noun

particle (plural particles)

  1. A very small piece of matter, a fragment; especially, the smallest possible part of something. [from 14th c.]
  2. (physics) Any of various physical objects making up the constituent parts of an atom; an elementary particle or subatomic particle. [from 19th c.]
  3. (linguistics) 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 in a vocative phrase (O Canada), or as a discourse marker (mmm).
  4. (linguistics) A part of speech which cannot be inflected.
    • 1844, E. A. Andrews: First Lessions in Latin; or Introduction to Andrews and Stoddard's Latin Grammar. (6th edition, Boston), p.91 (at books.google ↗)
      322. The parts of speech which are neither declined nor conjugated, are called by the general name of particles. 323. They are adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
    • 1894 (2008), B. L. Gildersleeve & G. Lodge: Gildersleeve's Latin Grammar (reprint of the 3rd edition by Dover, 2008), p.9. (at books.google ↗)
      The Parts of Speech are the Noun (Substantive and Adjective), the Pronoun, the Verb, and the Particles (Adverb, Preposition, and Conjunction)[.]
  5. (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.
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