as in nominal
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
the assistant's job was to shield the president from such footling problems
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dawdling
to spend time doing nothing
spent the morning footling about while others were working
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of footling
Barton Swaim, WSJ, 21 June 2019
Adjective
By comparison with previous Establishment Clause cases, however, this lawsuit looked footling and rather mean.
—Barton Swaim, WSJ, 21 June 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for footling
Adjective
-
The bulls claim that trend justifies today’s valuations, and that EPS can keep rolling in double-digits while national income trudges at a nominal 5% or so.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Funds routed through weakly regulated financial centers, often under nominal compliance regimes, help seed narratives designed to divide Western societies and undermine political cohesion.—
Gaurav Srivastava,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Further, there’s no excuse for Congress to continue dawdling on farm policy.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Faster pit stops could also help unlock sales for electric two-wheelers, which have been slow to catch on due to dawdling charge times and limited riding range.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
30 Mar. 2023
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, walnuts lend a slight crunch throughout.—
Cameron Beall,
Southern Living,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Cloud cover is forecasted to stick around all day, and temperatures are likely to top out in the low 80s this afternoon with a slight breeze from the south.—
Lauren Bostwick,
CBS News,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The pair had been loafing for some time among a grove of apple trees on a private residence in Payson.—
Shi En Kim,
AZCentral.com,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Within a few moments, an antlerless deer emerged, loafing along toward Ronnie, completely unalarmed.—
Jim Moore,
Outdoor Life,
8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Then, the pandemic reduced the schedule to 60 games and Eddie got a piddling 37%.—
Star Tribune,
Star Tribune,
3 Dec. 2020
-
Millions of additional claims are expected to stream in from around the country over the coming weeks, while hiring remains piddling.—
Patricia Cohen,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2020
Verb
-
Not to be outdone, the Tuscany Active Culinary Walking & Hiking Tour in Italy features wine sipping, a cooking class led by an engaging Italian chef, and plenty of strolling through the countryside.—
Beth Luberecki,
USA Today,
11 Apr. 2026
-
These days, Bailey is one of the celebrities people would be thrilled to see strolling down Hollywood Boulevard.—
Kailyn Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There are some pretty gross, petty and violent acts of revenge.—
Yvonne Villarreal,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
-
What is the pettiest thing that annoys you during a race weekend?—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Amenities and experiences Most of my afternoons were spent idling at the heated infinity pool, glass of African wine in hand, overlooking the crater.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Apr. 2026
-
But Stanley said the effort was entirely consistent with Patagonia's results-first philosophy — because Walmart is so huge, convincing it to do something as simple as not idling its delivery trucks while they are unloaded has a significant environmental benefit.—
Tony Biasotti,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Footling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/footling. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
