"small beer" meaning in English

See small beer in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Forms: small beers [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun|~}} small beer (countable and uncountable, plural small beers)
  1. (countable, uncountable) Beer with a low alcoholic content, usually between 0.5% and 2.8%. Tags: countable, uncountable Categories (topical): Alcoholic beverages Translations (beer with low alcohol content): ykkösolut (Finnish), Dünnbier [neuter] (German), lättöl [common-gender] (Swedish)
    Sense id: en-small_beer-en-noun-Rt6gQvK8 Disambiguation of Alcoholic beverages: 38 38 24 Categories (other): Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Czech translations, Terms with Spanish translations Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 42 42 17 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 38 42 19 Disambiguation of Terms with Czech translations: 35 43 21 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 33 41 26 Disambiguation of 'beer with low alcohol content': 83 8 9
  2. (uncountable, figurative, chiefly British) Something that is of relatively little importance. Tags: British, figuratively, uncountable Categories (topical): Alcoholic beverages Synonyms: peanuts, small potatoes, trifle Translations (something of little importance): klein bier (Dutch), hiluja (Finnish), pientä kauraa (english: financially) (Finnish), lillukanvarsi (english: detail) (Finnish), małe piwo [neuter] (Polish), el chocolate del loro [colloquial] (Spanish)
    Sense id: en-small_beer-en-noun-RTdzCt8C Disambiguation of Alcoholic beverages: 38 38 24 Categories (other): British English, English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Czech translations, Terms with Dutch translations, Terms with Finnish translations, Terms with German translations, Terms with Polish translations, Terms with Spanish translations, Terms with Swedish translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 37 46 18 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 29 40 31 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 42 42 17 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 38 42 19 Disambiguation of Terms with Czech translations: 35 43 21 Disambiguation of Terms with Dutch translations: 33 41 26 Disambiguation of Terms with Finnish translations: 30 47 23 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 33 41 26 Disambiguation of Terms with Polish translations: 31 46 23 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 33 41 26 Disambiguation of Terms with Swedish translations: 33 46 22 Disambiguation of 'something of little importance': 2 98 0
  3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see small, beer. Tags: countable, uncountable Categories (topical): Alcoholic beverages Related terms: near beer Translations (small serving of beer): malé pivo [neuter] (Czech), pieni olut (Finnish), małe piwo [neuter] (Polish), piwko [neuter] (Polish)
    Sense id: en-small_beer-en-noun-q-Pw6EXE Disambiguation of Alcoholic beverages: 38 38 24 Categories (other): Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Czech translations, Terms with Spanish translations Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 42 42 17 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 38 42 19 Disambiguation of Terms with Czech translations: 35 43 21 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 33 41 26 Disambiguation of 'small serving of beer': 37 12 51

Inflected forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "small beers",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "small beer (countable and uncountable, plural small beers)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
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          "_dis": "42 42 17",
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          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Alcoholic beverages",
          "orig": "en:Alcoholic beverages",
          "parents": [
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            "Drinking",
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        {
          "ref": "1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, The History of Pendennis. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1849–1850, →OCLC:",
          "text": "It was then that the large footmen were too much employed at Clavering Park to be able to bring messages, or dally over the cup of small beer with the poor little maids at Fairoaks",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 April 12, David Williams, “The best low alcohol beers”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "Looking back to the 18th century, when the production of very low-alcohol ‘small’ beers was widespread as a safer alternative to dirty drinking water for the whole family, Small Beer produces a set of sub-3% brews.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Beer with a low alcoholic content, usually between 0.5% and 2.8%."
      ],
      "id": "en-small_beer-en-noun-Rt6gQvK8",
      "links": [
        [
          "alcoholic",
          "alcoholic"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(countable, uncountable) Beer with a low alcoholic content, usually between 0.5% and 2.8%."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "83 8 9",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
          "word": "ykkösolut"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "83 8 9",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "Dünnbier"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "83 8 9",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "lättöl"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
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          "kind": "other",
          "name": "British English",
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          "_dis": "37 46 18",
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          "_dis": "29 40 31",
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          "_dis": "42 42 17",
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          "_dis": "38 42 19",
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          "_dis": "30 47 23",
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          "_dis": "33 46 22",
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        {
          "_dis": "38 38 24",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Alcoholic beverages",
          "orig": "en:Alcoholic beverages",
          "parents": [
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            "Recreational drugs",
            "Drinking",
            "Food and drink",
            "Liquids",
            "Drugs",
            "Human behaviour",
            "All topics",
            "Matter",
            "Pharmacology",
            "Human",
            "Fundamental",
            "Chemistry",
            "Nature",
            "Biochemistry",
            "Medicine",
            "Sciences",
            "Biology",
            "Healthcare",
            "Health",
            "Body"
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          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The income from standard widgets is small beer compared to the income from the gold-plated ones.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 317, column 2:",
          "text": "To ſuckle Fooles, and chronicle ſmall Beere.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1964 [1957], Colin MacInnes, City of Spades, London: Penguin Books, page 132:",
          "text": "‘He’s not in court, man—was quite a break.’\n‘You small beer to him, Peter, it must be.’",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2006 June 9, Kate Green, “Bring back free school meals”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "The estimated £3m extra cost of providing free school meals represents a little over 1% of the council's education spending. That's no small beer, but nor will it be a huge saving.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 January 12, Sir Michael Holden, “Reform of the workforce or death by a thousand cuts?”, in RAIL, number 948, page 23:",
          "text": "But because there is a limit to how much of this is achievable while keeping the whole network operating, we can expect this to amount to small beer in terms of the overall level of cost savings required.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Something that is of relatively little importance."
      ],
      "id": "en-small_beer-en-noun-RTdzCt8C",
      "links": [
        [
          "relatively",
          "relatively"
        ],
        [
          "importance",
          "importance"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(uncountable, figurative, chiefly British) Something that is of relatively little importance."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "peanuts"
        },
        {
          "word": "small potatoes"
        },
        {
          "word": "trifle"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "British",
        "figuratively",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "word": "klein bier"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "word": "hiluja"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "fi",
          "english": "financially",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "word": "pientä kauraa"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "fi",
          "english": "detail",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "word": "lillukanvarsi"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "małe piwo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "2 98 0",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "something of little importance",
          "tags": [
            "colloquial"
          ],
          "word": "el chocolate del loro"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "38 38 24",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Alcoholic beverages",
          "orig": "en:Alcoholic beverages",
          "parents": [
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            "Recreational drugs",
            "Drinking",
            "Food and drink",
            "Liquids",
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            "Chemistry",
            "Nature",
            "Biochemistry",
            "Medicine",
            "Sciences",
            "Biology",
            "Healthcare",
            "Health",
            "Body"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see small, beer."
      ],
      "id": "en-small_beer-en-noun-q-Pw6EXE",
      "links": [
        [
          "small",
          "small#English"
        ],
        [
          "beer",
          "beer#English"
        ]
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "_dis1": "35 4 61",
          "word": "near beer"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "37 12 51",
          "code": "cs",
          "lang": "Czech",
          "sense": "small serving of beer",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "malé pivo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "37 12 51",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "small serving of beer",
          "word": "pieni olut"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "37 12 51",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "small serving of beer",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "małe piwo"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "37 12 51",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "small serving of beer",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "piwko"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "small beer"
  ],
  "word": "small beer"
}
{
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    "English entries with incorrect language header",
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      "examples": [
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          "ref": "1848 November – 1850 December, William Makepeace Thackeray, The History of Pendennis. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1849–1850, →OCLC:",
          "text": "It was then that the large footmen were too much employed at Clavering Park to be able to bring messages, or dally over the cup of small beer with the poor little maids at Fairoaks",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 April 12, David Williams, “The best low alcohol beers”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "Looking back to the 18th century, when the production of very low-alcohol ‘small’ beers was widespread as a safer alternative to dirty drinking water for the whole family, Small Beer produces a set of sub-3% brews.",
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      ],
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      ],
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        "(countable, uncountable) Beer with a low alcoholic content, usually between 0.5% and 2.8%."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
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      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "The income from standard widgets is small beer compared to the income from the gold-plated ones.",
          "type": "example"
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        {
          "ref": "c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 317, column 2:",
          "text": "To ſuckle Fooles, and chronicle ſmall Beere.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1964 [1957], Colin MacInnes, City of Spades, London: Penguin Books, page 132:",
          "text": "‘He’s not in court, man—was quite a break.’\n‘You small beer to him, Peter, it must be.’",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2006 June 9, Kate Green, “Bring back free school meals”, in The Guardian:",
          "text": "The estimated £3m extra cost of providing free school meals represents a little over 1% of the council's education spending. That's no small beer, but nor will it be a huge saving.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2022 January 12, Sir Michael Holden, “Reform of the workforce or death by a thousand cuts?”, in RAIL, number 948, page 23:",
          "text": "But because there is a limit to how much of this is achievable while keeping the whole network operating, we can expect this to amount to small beer in terms of the overall level of cost savings required.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
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        "Something that is of relatively little importance."
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        "(uncountable, figurative, chiefly British) Something that is of relatively little importance."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "peanuts"
        },
        {
          "word": "small potatoes"
        },
        {
          "word": "trifle"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "British",
        "figuratively",
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    },
    {
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        "Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see small, beer."
      ],
      "links": [
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          "small",
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          "beer",
          "beer#English"
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      ],
      "tags": [
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        "uncountable"
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  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
      "word": "ykkösolut"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "Dünnbier"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "beer with low alcohol content",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "lättöl"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "word": "klein bier"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "word": "hiluja"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "english": "financially",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "word": "pientä kauraa"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "english": "detail",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "word": "lillukanvarsi"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "małe piwo"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "something of little importance",
      "tags": [
        "colloquial"
      ],
      "word": "el chocolate del loro"
    },
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "sense": "small serving of beer",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "malé pivo"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "small serving of beer",
      "word": "pieni olut"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "small serving of beer",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "małe piwo"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "small serving of beer",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "piwko"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "small beer"
  ],
  "word": "small beer"
}

Download raw JSONL data for small beer meaning in English (5.5kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-21 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (d8cb2f3 and 4e554ae). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.