small beer : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: small beer	by the DICT Development Group
3 results for small beer
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
small beer n something of small importance [syn: triviality, trivia, trifle, small beer]
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
4. Not prolonged in duration; not extended in time; short; as, after a small space. --Shak. 5. Weak; slender; fine; gentle; soft; not loud. [bd]A still, small voice.[b8] --1 Kings xix. 12. {Great and small},of all ranks or degrees; -- used especially of persons. [bd]His quests, great and small.[b8] --Chaucer. {Small arms}, muskets, rifles, pistols, etc., in distinction from cannon. {Small beer}. See under {Beer}. {Small coal}. (a) Little coals of wood formerly used to light fires. --Gay. (b) Coal about the size of a hazelnut, separated from the coarser parts by screening. {Small craft} (Naut.), a vessel, or vessels in general, of a small size. {Small fruits}. See under {Fruit}. {Small hand}, a certain size of paper. See under {Paper}. {Small hours}. See under {Hour}. {Small letter}. (Print.), a lower-case letter. See {Lower-case}, and {Capital letter}, under {Capital}, a. {Small piece}, a Scotch coin worth about 2[frac14]d. sterling, or about 4[frac12]cents. {Small register}. See the Note under 1st {Register}, 7. {Small stuff} (Naut.), spun yarn, marline, and the smallest kinds of rope. --R. H. Dana, Jr. {Small talk}, light or trifling conversation; chitchat. {Small wares} (Com.), various small textile articles, as tapes, braid, tringe, and the like. --M[bf]Culloch.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Beer \Beer\, n. [OE. beor, ber, AS. be[a2]r; akin to Fries. biar, Icel. bj[?]rr, OHG. bior, D. & G. bier, and possibly E. brew. [fb]93, See {Brew}.] 1. A fermented liquor made from any malted grain, but commonly from barley malt, with hops or some other substance to impart a bitter flavor. Note: Beer has different names, as {small beer}, {ale}, {porter}, {brown stout}, {lager beer}, according to its strength, or other qualities. See {Ale}. 2. A fermented extract of the roots and other parts of various plants, as spruce, ginger, sassafras, etc. {Small beer}, weak beer; (fig.) insignificant matters. [bd]To suckle fools, and chronicle small beer.[b8] --Shak.