Results for minor
On this page:
 
Dictionary:

minor

  ('nər) pronunciation
adj.
  1. Lesser or smaller in amount, extent, or size.
  2. Lesser in importance, rank, or stature: a minor politician.
  3. Lesser in seriousness or danger: a minor injury.
  4. Law. Being under legal age; not yet a legal adult.
  5. Chiefly British. Relating to or being the younger or junior of two pupils with the same surname.
  6. Of or relating to a secondary area of academic specialization.
  7. Logic. Dealing with a more restricted category.
  8. Music.
    1. Relating to or being a minor scale.
    2. Less in distance by a half step than the corresponding major interval.
    3. Based on a minor scale: a minor key.
n.
  1. One that is lesser in comparison with others of the same class.
  2. Law. One who has not reached full legal age.
    1. A secondary area of specialized academic study, requiring fewer courses or credits than a major.
    2. One studying in a secondary area of specialization: She is a physics minor.
  3. Logic.
    1. A minor premise.
    2. A minor term.
  4. Music. A minor key, scale, or interval.
  5. minors Sports. The minor leagues of a sport, especially baseball.
intr.v., -nored, -nor·ing, -nors.

To pursue academic studies in a minor field: minored in music.

[Middle English, from Latin.]


 
 

Person under the age of Majority specified by law (18 to 21 years, depending on the state). Certain contracts, entered into by a minor, are voidable by the minor. Note that the other party is bound; only the minor may void them. For purposes of the kiddie tax, a minor is anyone under age 14.

 

A person under the age of Majority specified by law (18 to 21 years, depending on the state).
Example: Contracts for the sale or use of real estate, entered into by a minor, are voidable by the minor. Note that the other party is bound; only the minor may void them.

 
Thesaurus: minor

adjective

  1. Below another in standing or importance: inferior, junior, lesser, low, lower2, minor-league, petty, secondary, small, subaltern, subordinate, under. Informal smalltime. See over/under.
  2. Not yet a legal adult: underage2. See law, youth/age/maturity.

noun

    One who is not yet legally of age: child, juvenile. Law infant. See law, youth/age/maturity.

 
Antonyms: minor

adj

Definition: insignificant, small
Antonyms: adult, greater, important, large, major, significant

adj, n

Definition: person under legal age of maturity
Antonyms: adult, major, senior


 

n

1. a person of either sex under the age of majority, that is, one who has not attained the age at which full civil rights are granted. adj 2. describing a procedure or treatment that is non- or minimally invasive; describing an illness or condition that is temporary and minimally debilitating.

 

(1) The name given to a scale whose octave species, in its natural form, is built of the following ascending sequence of intervals: T-S-T-T-S-T-T (T= tone, S= semitone). The note chosen to begin the sequence, the key note, becomes part of the name of the scale, i.e.the scale beginning on A is the scale of A minor. A piece or passage whose melodic basis is a minor scale (say, that on A) and whose harmonic basis is the minor triad on the key note of that scale is said to be ‘in A minor’ (lower-case letters, ‘a minor’ or simply ‘a’ are sometimes used to distinguish minor from major).

In the minor scale, some notes are altered chromatically to increase the harmonic or melodic sense of direction: the ‘harmonic minor’ scale has a raised 7th, in accordance with the major triad on the fifth step (the dominant); the melodic minor scale has a raised 6th and a raised 7th when it is ascending, borrowing the leading-note function of the seventh step from the major scale; when descending it is the same as the natural minor scale. See ex.1.

(2) A minor Interval is one a semitone smaller than a major interval of the same name but contains the same number of diatonic scale steps. A minor Triad is a three-note chord which, reckoned from the lowest note, is built of a minor 3rd and a perfect 5th.

Ex.1


 
This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

An infant or person who is under the age of legal competence. A term derived from the civil law, which described a person under a certain age as less than so many years. In most states, a person is no longer a minor after reaching the age of 18 (though state laws might still prohibit certain acts until reaching a greater age; e.g., purchase of liquor). Also, less; of less consideration; lower; a person of inferior condition.

 
A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce


adj.

Less objectionable.


 
Word Tutor: minor
pronunciation

IN BRIEF: Less in size or importance. Also: Not yet an adult.

pronunciation There is no such thing as a minor lapse of integrity. — Tom Peters.

Tutor's tip: Union rules forbade a "minor" (a person under legal age) to do the work of a "miner" (a person who works in a mine).

 
Wikipedia: minor (linear algebra)
This article is about a concept in linear algebra. For the unrelated concept of "minor" in graph theory, see minor (graph theory).

In linear algebra, a minor of a matrix A is the determinant of some smaller square matrix, cut down from A.

Detailed definition

Let A be an m × n matrix and k an integer with 0 < k, km, and kn. A k × k minor of A is the determinant of a k × k matrix obtained from A by deleting mk rows and nk columns.

Since there are

mCk    (read "m choose k")

ways from m rows to choose k rows, and there are

nCk

ways from n columns to choose k columns, there are a total of

mCk · nCk

minors of size k × k.

Cofactors

The (n − 1) × (n − 1) minor (often denoted Mij) of an n × n square matrix is defined as the determinant of the matrix formed by removing the ith row and the jth column.

The cofactor Cij of a square matrix A is just (−1)i + j times the corresponding minor:

Cij = (−1)i + j Mij

The transpose of the matrix C of cofactors is called the adjugate matrix.

Example

For example, given the matrix

\begin{pmatrix} 1 & 4 & 7 \\ 3 & 0 & 5 \\ -1 & 9 & 11 \\ \end{pmatrix}

suppose we wish to find the cofactor C23. The minor M23 is the determinant of the above matrix with row 2 and column 3 removed (the following is not standard notation):

\begin{vmatrix} 1 & 4 & \Box \\ \Box & \Box & \Box \\ -1 & 9 & \Box \\ \end{vmatrix} yields \begin{vmatrix} 1 & 4 \\ -1 & 9 \\ \end{vmatrix} = (9-(-4)) = 13.

where the vertical bars around the matrix indicate that the determinant should be taken. Thus, C23 is (-1)^{2+3} \!\ M23 = -13  \!\

Applications

The cofactors feature prominently in Laplace's formula for the expansion of determinants. If all the cofactors of a square matrix A are collected to form a new matrix of the same size, one obtains the adjugate of A, which is useful in calculating the inverse of small matrices.

Given an m × n matrix with real entries (or entries from any other field) and rank r, then there exists at least one non-zero r × r minor, while all larger minors are zero.

We will use the following notation for minors: if A is an m × n matrix, I is a subset of {1,...,m} with k elements and J is a subset of {1,...,n} with k elements, then we write [A]I,J for the k × k minor of A that corresponds to the rows with index in I and the columns with index in J.

  • If I = J, then [A]I,J is called a principal minor.
  • If the matrix that corresponds to a principal minor includes the upper-left corner of the larger matrix (i.e., the matrix element in first row and first column), then the principal minor is called a leading principal minor. For an n × n square matrix, there are n leading principal minors.
  • For Hermitian matrices, the principal minors can be used to test for positive definiteness.

Both the formula for ordinary matrix multiplication and the Cauchy-Binet formula for the determinant of the product of two matrices are special cases of the following general statement about the minors of a product of two matrices. Suppose that A is an m × n matrix, B is an n × p matrix, I is a subset of {1,...,m} with k elements and J is a subset of {1,...,p} with k elements. Then

[AB]_{I,J} = \sum_{K} [A]_{I,K} [B]_{K,J}\,

where the sum extends over all subsets K of {1,...,n} with k elements. This formula is a straightforward corollary of the Cauchy-Binet formula.

Multilinear algebra approach

A more systematic, algebraic treatment of the minor concept is given in multilinear algebra, using the wedge product: the k-minors of a matrix are the entries in the kth exterior power map.

If the columns of a matrix are wedged together k at a time, the k × k minors appear as the components of the resulting k-vectors. For example, the 2 × 2 minors of the matrix

\begin{pmatrix} 1 & 4 \\ 3 & -1 \\ 2 & 1 \\ \end{pmatrix}

are −13 (from the first two rows), −7 (from the first and last row), and 5 (from the last two rows). Now consider the wedge product

(\mathbf{e}_1 + 3\mathbf{e}_2 +2\mathbf{e}_3)\wedge(4\mathbf{e}_1-\mathbf{e}_2+\mathbf{e}_3)

where the two expressions correspond to the two columns of our matrix. Using the properties of the wedge product, namely that it is bilinear and

\mathbf{e}_i\wedge \mathbf{e}_i = 0

and

\mathbf{e}_i\wedge \mathbf{e}_j = - \mathbf{e}_j\wedge \mathbf{e}_i,

we can simplify this expression to

-13 \mathbf{e}_1\wedge \mathbf{e}_2 -7 \mathbf{e}_1\wedge \mathbf{e}_3 +5 \mathbf{e}_2\wedge \mathbf{e}_3

where the coefficients agree with the minors computed earlier.


 

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - mindre, små-, underordnet
n. - umyndig, mindreårig
v. intr. - tage bifag/sidefag

idioms:

  • minor axis    lille akse
  • minor key    moltoneart
  • minor league    liga med klubber, som ikke er i første række
  • minor party    den mindre/yngre del

Nederlands (Dutch)
van ondergeschikt belang, minderjarige, minderjarig, gering

Français (French)
adj. - léger, (Mus) mineur, (US, Univ) secondaire, (GB, École) junior (arch)
n. - (Jur) mineur, (US, Univ) matière secondaire
v. intr. - (US, Univ) prendre qch en matière secondaire

idioms:

  • minor axis    petit axe
  • minor in    (US, Univ) étudier (qch) comme matière secondaire ou sous-dominante
  • minor key    clé mineure, (Mus) en mineur
  • minor league    (US, Sport) division secondaire
  • minor party    parti minoritaire

Deutsch (German)
n. - Minderjähriger, Nebenfach
adj. - weniger wichtig, kleiner, Neben..., geringfügig, nebensächlich, minderjährig
v. - etw. als Nebenfach haben, im Nebenfach studieren

idioms:

  • minor axis    (Geom.) kleine Achse
  • minor in    etwas als Nebenfach haben
  • minor key    Molltonart
  • minor league    untere Liga
  • minor party    kleine Partei, Minderheitspartei

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ανήλικος, (μουσ.) ελάσσων, μινόρε
adj. - μικρότερος, δευτερεύων, επουσιώδης, μικρός

idioms:

  • minor axis    ελάχιστος ελλειψοειδής άξονας
  • minor key    (μουσ.) ελάσσων τόνος, μινόρε
  • minor league    (ΗΠΑ) (στο φούτμπολ, μπέιζμπολ, κ.λπ.) δεύτερη κατηγορία
  • minor party    μικρό κόμμα

Italiano (Italian)
minorenne, materia secondaria, secondario, minore

idioms:

  • minor axis    asse minore
  • minor key    chiave minore
  • minor league    lega minore
  • minor party    partito minuscolo

Português (Portuguese)
n. - menor (f) (de idade), tom menor (m) (Mús.)
adj. - menor, secundário

idioms:

  • minor axis    eixo perpendicular ao eixo principal (Geom.)
  • minor key    terça menor (f) (Mús.)
  • minor league    time de segunda divisão (m)
  • minor party    partido minoritário

Русский (Russian)
второстепенный, несовершеннолетний, минорный, малый, младший из двух братьев, изучать что-л. в качестве второй специальности

idioms:

  • minor axis    малая ось
  • minor key    минорная нота
  • minor league    второстепенная спортивная лига
  • minor party    небольшая политическая партия

Español (Spanish)
adj. - menor, secundario, de segundo orden, más pequeño
n. - menor, asignatura secundaria, materia secundaria
v. intr. - elegir como asignatura o materia secundaria

idioms:

  • minor axis    eje menor
  • minor in    estudiar una materia subsidiaria
  • minor key    tono menor (mús.)
  • minor league    liga secundaria de clubes profesionales, liga menor
  • minor party    partido minoritario

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - minderårig, tillvalsämne, student som har ngt. som tillvalsämne, moll, undersats
adj. - mindre, små-, minderårig

中文(简体) (Chinese (Simplified))
较小的, 未成年的, 二流的, 未成年人, 副修科目, 小调, 小音阶, 辅修

idioms:

  • minor axis    短轴
  • minor key    小调
  • minor league    小职业球队联盟
  • minor party    少数党, 小政党

中文(繁體) (Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 較小的, 未成年的, 二流的
n. - 未成年人, 副修科目, 小調, 小音階
v. intr. - 輔修

idioms:

  • minor axis    短軸
  • minor key    小調
  • minor league    小職業球隊聯盟
  • minor party    少數黨, 小政黨

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 중요하지 않은, 작은, 미성년의, 아래 사람의, (음악의) 단조의
n. - 성년이 아직 안된 사람, 부전공 과목, 소전제
v. intr. - 부전공을 하다

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 小さいほうの, 重要でない, 短調の, 軽症の, 年少の, 未成年の, 短音程の
n. - 未成年者, 副専攻科目, 短調

idioms:

  • minor axis    短軸
  • minor key    短調, 陰気な気分
  • minor league    マイナーリーグ
  • minor party    少数党

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) قاصر (صفه) أصغر, أقل, صغير‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮משני, זוטר, קטן, צעיר, טפל, לא רציני, מינורי, זעיר‬
n. - ‮קטין, מקצוע לימודים משני של סטודנט (ארה"ב)‬
v. intr. - ‮למד (נושא) כמקצוע לימודים משני (סטודנט)‬


 
Best of the Web: minor

Some good "minor" pages on the web:


American Sign Language
commtechlab.msu.edu
 

Math
mathworld.wolfram.com
 
 
 

Join the WikiAnswers Q&A community. Post a question or answer questions about "minor" at WikiAnswers.

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Business Dictionary. Dictionary of Business Terms. Copyright © 2000 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Real Estate Dictionary. Dictionary of Real Estate Terms. Copyright © 2004 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Antonyms. © 1999-2008 by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Dental Dictionary. Mosby's Dental Dictionary. Copyright © 2004 by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Music Encyclopedia. The Concise Grove Dictionary of Music. Copyright © 1994 by Oxford University Press, Inc.. All rights reserved.  Read more
Law Encyclopedia. West's Encyclopedia of American Law. Copyright © 1998 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Devil's Dictionary. Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce, 1911  Read more
Word Tutor. Copyright © 2004-present by eSpindle Learning, a 501(c) nonprofit organization. All rights reserved.
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; free trial Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Minor (linear algebra)" Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

On this page:   E-mail   print Print  Link  

 

Keep Reading

Mentioned In: