Petite means small and slim, said of a woman. A petite figure, the petite range, petite and dark.
In clothing it is a technical size range cut for women under about five foot four, with shorter sleeves and a higher waist rather than merely smaller measurements. It keeps its French feminine form, which is why it is not used of men.
1adjectivepetiteSmall and slim, said of a woman.
“The petite young dancer was barely five feet tall.”
petite is a quality.
French petite is the feminine of petit, small, of uncertain origin.
French
petite
English, today
petite
Built from
Borrowed from French petite, feminine of petit (“small, little”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA