Thesaurus results for PETTIFOGGER

pettifogger

noun

Definition of pettifogger

as in lawyer

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as in quibbler

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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 pettifogger For nearly three years now, I’ve been fascinated by the performance art of this blustering pettifogger. — Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2023

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pettifogger

Noun

Mangione's lawyers and federal prosecutors in Manhattan also discussed a possible guilty plea in his federal case in June, sources previously told ABC News.

— Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
In October 2021, Alabama's capital city of Montgomery removed the Confederate president's name from an avenue and renamed it after a famed lawyer of the civil rights movement.

— Riley Bunch, AJC.com, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of lawyer

Noun

While there are certainly some wood purists out there, Molnar isn’t one of them.

— Tessa Cooper, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2026
Yet, trapped within the GOP apparatus, his baseline scenario has always been a predictable squeeze in the primary, caught between conservative purists who view him as too centrist and partisan Democrats who hold the financial high ground.

— Dain Fitzgerald, The Washington Examiner, 1 Aug. 2026

Definition of purist

Noun

The bubble-ists think that the Coreweave people are hopeless dreamers at best and shysters at worst.

— Jim Cramer, CNBC, 28 Sep. 2025
To demonstrate that point in a video, a researcher told a robot arm to put a bunch of plastic grapes into a clear Tupperware container, then proceeded to shift three containers around on the table in an approximation of a shyster’s shell game.

— Eliza Strickland, IEEE Spectrum, 12 Mar. 2025

Definition of shyster

Noun

Basko, who founded the Historic New Jersey label in his South Philly basement studio, is an analog perfectionist who has played in Foxygen, written songs for a superhero TV show, and released four solo albums last year.

— W. Reed Putnam, Pitchfork, 30 July 2026
The primary focus will be on manager Thomas Tuchel, the German perfectionist who drew the ire of his nation after being critical of the Three Lions’ performance in the quarterfinal win over Norway.

— Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 16 July 2026

Definition of perfectionist

Noun

According to their attorney, an unmarked vehicle carrying immigration agents attempted to pull them over near Dundalk Avenue and O'Donnell Street.

— Adam Thompson, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
Entertainment Weekly has reached out to attorneys for both Carradine’s family and the regents of the University of California for comment.

— Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of attorney

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“Pettifogger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pettifogger. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of pettifogger

noun

Example Sentences

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