smalls
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
A University term for the first general examination of the student. It is used at Cambridge, but properly belongs to Oxford. The Cambridge term is "little go."
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “smalls” mean?
A University term for the first general examination of the student. It is used at Cambridge, but properly belongs to Oxford. The Cambridge term is "little go."
Is “smalls” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.