Example
little (adjective)
Small, often with affection; before a noun.
There's a little café near my flat that I love.
Written by Fizza Butool Zaidi and Ali Zaidi
13 alternatives
Small, often with affection; before a noun.
There's a little café near my flat that I love.
Don't swap blindly: Little before a noun adds feeling. With uncountable nouns it means 'not much': 'little time'.
Very small.
My first flat was tiny, just one room and a kitchen.
Small in importance or seriousness.
There were a few minor problems, but the trip went well.
Small in degree; for changes and differences.
There's been a slight improvement in air quality.
Fairly small; for amounts, incomes, increases.
Most volunteers live on modest incomes.
Not much; restricted.
Rural areas have limited access to fast internet.
Small but designed to use space well.
I bought a compact car because parking is difficult in the city.
Too small for the people or things in it.
The classrooms were cramped, with forty students in each.
Don't swap blindly: Negative; for a small space that is pleasant, use cosy.
Small, warm and comfortable. British spelling.
Our living room is quite cosy, especially in winter.
As small as possible.
The new system requires minimal training.
So small that it does not matter.
The cost to each household would be negligible.
Natural with traffic, rain and meals.
Traffic is usually light on Sunday mornings.
Don't swap blindly: 'Small traffic' is wrong; say light traffic.
For numbers, levels, prices and rates.
Unemployment is low in my region.
Don't swap blindly: 'A small number' is fine, but 'small prices' is wrong; say low prices.
Paraphrasing
Band tip: the public IELTS Writing band descriptors for Lexical Resource describe Band 7 as using “less common lexical items” with “some awareness of style and collocation”. A synonym that changes your meaning or breaks a collocation works against you, so choose the word that fits the sentence, not the rarest one you know.
In context
I live in a flat. It's fairly compact, just two bedrooms, but it's cosy and the rent is quite low for the area. The only minor problem is the kitchen, which is a bit cramped when we're all cooking at the same time.
Tiny for very small size, minor for importance, slight for degree, modest for amounts, limited for access or resources, low for numbers and prices.
Both describe size. Little often adds feeling ('a lovely little village'). With uncountable nouns, little means 'not much': 'There is little evidence'.
Not for cost in general; say low prices. 'A small price to pay' is a fixed phrase meaning a minor sacrifice.
It suits Part 3 when you discuss costs or risks. In Part 1, 'tiny' or 'very small' is more natural.
Practise
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