significantly too small

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "significantly too small" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe something that is not only small but also smaller than what is considered acceptable or necessary. Example: "The dimensions of the new office space are significantly too small for our growing team."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

As stated above, from our experience with the CHAMP data, the standard deviations of the residuals in polar regions are significantly too small compared to what we expect from real data.

Earth, Planets and Space

If R 2 n is significantly too small, it indicates the tendency to return (i.e. barrier effect on movement), whereas a R 2 n that is significantly too high indicates a movement straighter than average CRW.

BMC Evolutionary Biology

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

While big enough to risk pushing back the government's goal to balance the budget in 2011, the spending may still be too small to significantly dent the effect of falling demand at home and abroad.

The New York Times

For highly soluble gases, the surfactant cap is too small to significantly affect the dissolution process until most of the bubble's mass is gone.

Chemical Engineering Science

Obviously, the annealing can cause some QW intermixing[19, 20], but this change in QW potential shape is too small to significantly reduce the wave function overlap.

Nanoscale Research Letters

A paper in tomorrow's issue of Nature concludes that changes in the sun's brightness over the past 100 years have been too small to significantly impact Earth's climate.

Science Magazine

Both our mean field analysis and our simulations show that, in this model, inhomogeneity in pattern sizes reduces memory capacity, but it does so in an asymmetric way: whereas too small patterns significantly compromise the stability of sequence recall, too large patterns can be compensated for quite robustly.

The Journal of Mathematical Neuroscience

This species is taken by deepwater commercial fisheries, but in numbers too small to significantly threaten its population.

Wikipedia

The vast majority of these erosion events are too small to significantly alter channel morphology, although they can locally reduce salmon survival for one or more years.

Evolutionary Applications

This extra time of about 2 5 minutes is believed to be too small to significantly change the outcome of the study.

Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation

Thus the changes in fibre intake in that trial may have been too small to significantly reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.

British Medical Journal

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "significantly too small", ensure the context clearly establishes the expected or required size for effective communication.

Common error

Avoid using "significantly too small" when the smallness doesn't have a notable impact or consequence; otherwise, the 'significantly' part may be an overstatement.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "significantly too small" functions as an adjectival phrase modifying a noun. It indicates that something is not only small but also, its smallness is notably insufficient or inadequate for a particular purpose. Ludwig confirms its proper usage.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

50%

News & Media

40%

Formal & Business

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "significantly too small" is used to describe something that is not only small but also, its smallness is notably insufficient or inadequate. As Ludwig AI confirms, the phrase is grammatically correct and appears across various contexts, including Science, News & Media and Formal & Business settings. While relatively uncommon, using it correctly involves ensuring that the context justifies the use of 'significantly', implying a meaningful consequence to the small size.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

considerably undersized

Emphasizes the extent of being smaller than required.

markedly insufficient

Highlights the inadequacy or deficiency in quantity or size.

substantially inadequate

Focuses on the significant degree of inadequacy.

noticeably diminutive

Draws attention to the small size in a perceptible way.

appreciably meager

Stresses the scantiness or lack of abundance.

distinctly insufficient

Highlights the clear and obvious inadequacy.

far too little

Focuses on the insufficient quantity or amount.

much too limited

Emphasizes the restricted or confined nature.

excessively reduced

Highlights the extreme reduction in size or amount.

inordinately petite

Stresses the unusually small or delicate nature.

FAQs

How can I rephrase "significantly too small"?

You can use alternatives like "considerably undersized", "markedly insufficient", or "substantially inadequate" depending on the context.

Is it appropriate to use "significantly too small" in formal writing?

Yes, "significantly too small" is appropriate for formal writing. However, consider if a more precise or technical term might be more suitable depending on the specific field or context.

What does it mean when something is described as "significantly too small"?

It means that something is not only small, but its smallness is important or has consequences. It's smaller than what is needed or expected to be effective.

How do I emphasize the degree to which something is "significantly too small"?

You could add further qualifiers like "alarmingly significantly too small" or specify the precise difference to highlight the extent of the inadequacy.