microcosm
noun
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Small wonder that the oldest meaning of microcosm in our dictionary is “little world”: the word comes ultimately from the Greek phrase mikros kosmos, meaning “little universe.” That meaning can be applied to many a wee realm, as in “the microcosm of the atom,” but microcosm was originally used by medieval scholars specifically to refer to humans as miniature embodiments of the natural universe. Microcosm soon expanded to refer to places (such as neighborhoods or other communities) thought to embody at a small scale characteristics of larger places, and later to anything serving as an apt representation of something bigger—as when Arthur C. Clarke, famed author of much fiction and nonfiction set in the cosmos, noted that “a sunken ship is a microcosm of the civilization that launched it.”
Examples of microcosm in a Sentence
Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 11 July 2025
Adrian Molina’s departure as director—originally set to break barriers as Pixar’s first Latino and LGBTQ+ solo director—frames the film’s production as a microcosm of representation struggles in Hollywood, despite his ongoing credit[1].
—Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2025
Our swing states are closer to microcosms of the United States — Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada, Wisconsin and Michigan.
—Dave Anderson, Baltimore Sun, 5 July 2025
These bargain hunters serve as a microcosm of the American consumer fixation on gas prices.
—Linnea Geiss, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for microcosm
Cite this Entry
“Microcosm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/microcosm. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
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microcosm
noun
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