The Chinese word 微型 (wēixíng) is a compound word formed by combining two meaningful characters: 微 (wēi), meaning "tiny", "minute", or "micro-", and 型 (xíng), meaning "model", "type", or "form". When combined, they create a noun (often used adjectivally) that literally means "tiny type" or "micro model", and is used to mean "miniature", "mini-", or "micro-" as in 微型计算机 (microcomputer) or 微型小说 (short-short story). This follows the common Chinese word-formation pattern where a descriptive element (微) modifies a categorical element (型) to specify a particular kind or class of objects.