as in slight
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
only niggling differences between the original Broadway musical and the film version that followed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in complaining
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
you know it drives me crazy when you niggle like that
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of niggling
Andy Naylor, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2025
The sellers got slightly more than their asking price without any niggling 11th-hour negotiations.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 29 Aug. 2024
And yet, a niggling sense of loss remains after the season 5 finale; many of Diana’s most important moments and relationships are relegated to a handful of scenes.
—Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 10 Nov. 2022
Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
There are niggling, nagging, familiar concerns, like not taking chances, like being hit on the counter, but our section erupts when Willock scores and then erupts again when his goal is ruled out.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
The hard part of getting cars to drive themselves is the last niggling 1 percent of reliability.
—IEEE Spectrum, 18 Oct. 2016
Adjective
Numerous niggling absences across the pre-season programme, plus the loss of Adam Webster for most of the campaign with knee ligament damage sustained in a non-contact incident in training during the camp in Spain in July, do not bode well on that front.
—Andy Naylor, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2025
The sellers got slightly more than their asking price without any niggling 11th-hour negotiations.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 29 Aug. 2024
And yet, a niggling sense of loss remains after the season 5 finale; many of Diana’s most important moments and relationships are relegated to a handful of scenes.
—Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 10 Nov. 2022
Verb
Henry dismisses Yasmin but can’t shake the niggling feeling that his wife isn’t entirely wrong.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
There are niggling, nagging, familiar concerns, like not taking chances, like being hit on the counter, but our section erupts when Willock scores and then erupts again when his goal is ruled out.
—George Caulkin, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2026
The hard part of getting cars to drive themselves is the last niggling 1 percent of reliability.
—IEEE Spectrum, 18 Oct. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for niggling
Adjective
-
For the latter, a 2023 meta-analysis found that even a slight bump in the average monthly temperature can lead to increases in suicide and suicidal behavior.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Washington has made a slight improvement on defense, especially as a rim protector, but there’s more room for Washington to regain his footing during the final quarter of the season.—
Mike Curtis,
Dallas Morning News,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Cover your ears, look away, or grab a hot dog — after all, not every artist is for everyone, and complaining won’t change that.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Many suits came from roofing and paving companies, architects, lumber suppliers and similar businesses complaining that Ferrigno’s company never paid them for materials and labor at his various housing construction sites in Avon and Simsbury.—
Don Stacom,
Hartford Courant,
12 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Seven has been the nominal crew size on the ISS since 2020.—
Mike Wall,
Space.com,
14 Feb. 2026
-
This year, though, both LaHood and Bost are running unopposed in the March 17 GOP primary and Miller’s facing only nominal opposition.—
Daniel C. Vock,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Joy Randolph and John Early, as the two Afterlife Coordinators, have a quibbling charisma, but the movie should have done more with all its possible versions of paradise, figuring out how to use them comedically instead of just as easy punchlines.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
-
When the murder of 100,000 people, many of them women and children, is mentioned or denounced, or when someone dares to use terms such as genocide, ethnocide, ethnic cleansing or similar, most people choose to take issue with the characterization, quibbling over semantics.—
Uriel Kon
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Here are some of the pettiest, most unimportant frustrations so far.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Forget all this childish behavior and just stop being so petty.—
Marcia Kramer,
CBS News,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Your son is fussing in his car seat.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
12 Feb. 2026
-
Emma looked around, confused at the adults fussing around him and too young, perhaps, to grasp the severity of the scene.—
Maeva Bambuck,
CNN Money,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The tiny tip gives you flexibility to fill and shape your brows for a bold look or something more minimal with just a little enhancement and color.—
Alanna Martine Kilkeary,
Glamour,
20 Feb. 2026
-
These particles are covered with tiny chain-like structures that interact with metal ions in solution.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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While Slot was moaning about having to play two away matches in four days (and about missing a couple of key players), Emery, also without important figures such as Boubacar Kamara, was overseeing his Villa side playing the same tough schedule and win both games without conceding a goal.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
26 Jan. 2026
-
While lying on the pavement, he could be heard moaning as an officer shouted at him not to move.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
13 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Niggling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/niggling. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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