Runt

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Runt \Runt\, n. [Written also {rant}.] [Scot. runt an old cow,
     an old, withered woman, a hardened stem or stalk, the trunk
     of a tree; cf. D. rund a bullock, an ox or cow, G. rind. Cf.
     {Rother}, a.]
     1. (Zool.) Any animal which is unusually small, as compared
        with others of its kind; -- applied particularly to


        domestic animals.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Zool.) A variety of domestic pigeon, related to the barb
        and carrier.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. A dwarf; also, a mean, despicable, boorish person; -- used
        opprobriously.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Before I buy a bargain of such runts,
              I'll buy a college for bears, and live among 'em.
                                                    --Beau. & Fl.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. The dead stump of a tree; also, the stem of a plant. [Obs.
        or Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Neither young poles nor old runts are durable.
                                                    --Holland.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  runt
       n : disparaging terms for small people [syn: {shrimp}, {peewee},
            {half-pint}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  61 Moby Thesaurus words for "runt":
     Lilliputian, Tom Thumb, a nobody, a nothing, bantam, banty,
     brownie, button, chit, cipher, common man, diminutive, dummy,
     dwarf, elf, featherweight, figurehead, fingerling, gnome,
     homunculus, insignificancy, jackstraw, lightweight, lilliputian,
     little fellow, little guy, man of straw, manikin, mediocrity,
     midge, midget, mini, minikin, minnow, minny, mouse, nebbish,
     nobody one knows, nonentity, nubbin, obscurity, peewee, pip-squeak,
     pony, punk, pygmy, scrub, shrimp, slip, small fry, small potato,
     small potatoes, snip, snippet, squirt, squit, tit, wart, whiffet,
     whippersnapper, wisp