petit

• POS: Adjective, Noun
• HYPHEN: pet=it

CIDE DICTIONARY

petit, a. [F. See Petty.].

 Small; little; insignificant; mean; -- Same as Petty.  [1913 Webster]
"By what small, petit hints does the mind catch hold of and recover a vanishing notion."  [1913 Webster]

Petit constable, an inferior civil officer, subordinate to the high constable. -- Petit jury, a jury of twelve men, impaneled to try causes at the bar of a court; -- so called in distinction from the grand jury. -- Petit larceny, the stealing of goods of, or under, a certain specified small value; -- opposed to grand larceny. The distinction is abolished in England. -- Petit maître (. [F., lit., little master.] A fop; a coxcomb; a ladies' man. Goldsmith. -- Petit serjeanty (Eng. Law), the tenure of lands of the crown, by the service of rendering annually some implement of war, as a bow, an arrow, a sword, a flag, etc. -- Petit treason, formerly, in England, the crime of killing a person to whom the offender owed duty or subjection, as one's husband, master, mistress, etc. The crime is now not distinguished from murder.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

petit, adj. esp. Law petty; small; of lesser importance.

Idiom

petit jury = petty jury.

Etymology

ME f. OF, = small, f. Rmc, perh. imit. of child's speech