From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmicrocosmmi‧cro‧cos‧m /ˈmaɪkrəʊkɒzəm $ -kroʊkɑː-/ noun [countable] COPYa small group, society, or place that has the same qualities as a much larger one → macrocosmmicrocosm of New York’s mix of people is a microcosm of America.in microcosm All the problems of society can be seen here in microcosm. —microcosmic /ˌmaɪkrəʊˈkɒzmɪk $ -kroʊˈkɑːz-/ adjective the forces which we see at work on a microcosmic scale
Examples from the Corpus
microcosm• The state has become a microcosm of the economic change that has gripped the nation.• New Hampshire is hardly a microcosm of the United States.• The family is a microcosm of social existence for which our young are pre-adapted.• The wall is a microcosm of a city where art well and truly thrived.• It was a fantastic microcosm, full of humour and savagery.• The final game was the series in microcosm.• In the beginning, ecologists built simple mathematical models and simple laboratory microcosms.in microcosm• Harris' production company is starting to look like an empire in microcosm.Origin microcosm (1100-1200) Medieval Latin microcosmus, from Greek mikros kosmos “small world” 