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Simplicity vs Minimal - What's the difference?

simplicity | minimal |

As a noun simplicity

is the quality or state of being simple, unmixed, or uncompounded; as, the simplicity of metals or of earths.

As an adjective minimal is

the smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.

simplicity

English

(Webster 1913)

Noun

(wikipedia simplicity)
  • The quality or state of being simple, unmixed, or uncompounded; as, the simplicity of metals or of earths.
  • The quality or state of being not complex, or of consisting of few parts; as, the simplicity of a machine.
  • Artlessness of mind; freedom from cunning or duplicity; lack of acuteness and sagacity.
  • Freedom from artificial ornament, pretentious style, or luxury; plainness; as, simplicity of dress, of style, or of language; simplicity of diet; simplicity of life.
  • Freedom from subtlety or abstruseness; clearness; as, the simplicity of a doctrine; the simplicity of an explanation or a demonstration.
  • Freedom from complication; efficiency.
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-08-03, volume=408, issue=8847, magazine=(The Economist)
  • , title= Boundary problems , passage=Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too. GDP measures the total value of output in an economic territory. Its apparent simplicity explains why it is scrutinised down to tenths of a percentage point every month.}}
  • Weakness of intellect; silliness; folly.
  • (rare) An act or instance of foolishness.
  • *, II.31:
  • *:speaking of the great simplicity we commit, in leaving yong children under the government and charge of their fathers and parents.
  • Antonyms

    * complexity * complication

    References

    * *

    minimal

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • The smallest possible amount, quantity, or degree.
  • (arts) characterised by the use of simple form or structures.
  • (music) characterised by the repetition and gradual alteration of short phrases.
  • Derived terms

    * minimally * minimal pair

    Antonyms

    * maximal