minnow

UK: /ˈmɪnəʊ/ US: /ˈmɪnoʊ/ ,(min′ō)

Inflections of 'minnow' (n):

minnows

npl (All usages)

minnow

npl (Can be used as a collective plural—e.g. "The men are fishing for minnow.")

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

min•now /ˈmɪnoʊ/   n. [countable] , pl. (esp. for kinds or species) -nows, (esp. when thought of as a group;
rare) -now. 

1. Fish a small fish of fresh waters.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

min•now  (min′ō), n., pl. (esp. referring to two or more kinds or species) -nows,  (esp. collectively, Rare) -now for 1, 2, 3.

1. Fish a small, European cyprinoid fish, Phoxinus phoxinus.
2. Fish any other fish of the family Cyprinidae, including the carps, goldfishes, and daces.
3. Fish any of various unrelated, small fishes.
4. a person or thing that is comparatively small or insignificant.

• 1325–75; Middle English minwe, Old English *mynwe (feminine) for myne (masculine); cognate with Old High German munewa kind of fish

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

minnow / ˈmɪnəʊ/ noun ( -nows, -now)

1. a small slender European freshwater cyprinid fish, Phoxinus phoxinus
2. a small or insignificant person

Etymology: 15th Century: related to Old English myne minnow; compare Old High German muniwa fish