1
as in lawyer
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2
as in quibbler
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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
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pettifogger
Noun
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Plasencia left the courthouse with his lawyers without speaking to reporters gathered outside.—
Andrew Dalton,
Chicago Tribune,
23 July 2025
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Before his hearing, Soliman reacted to the violence in a message his lawyers shared on Instagram.—
Patricia Gallagher Newberry,
The Enquirer,
23 July 2025
Noun
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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
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Holmes is another shyster whose story has been dissected in several documentaries and in dramatizations like Hulu’s The Dropout, but Gibney brings specific insights and a fresh perspective to this truly unbelievable story.—
Declan Gallagher,
EW.com,
31 July 2024
Noun
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But this one does…The purists are going to say, 'Hey, shut your mouth.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
22 July 2025
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And while the marque calls this a shooting brake, purists will point out that true shooting brakes only have two doors; what Mercedes has made is a station wagon instead, or an estate car as they’re called in the U.K.—
Erik Shilling,
Robb Report,
15 July 2025
Noun
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Burke was terminated by the department after he was charged, his attorney, Marc Curtis, said after the start of the hearing June 23.—
Christina Hall,
Freep.com,
31 July 2025
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Grossberg's attorney, Thomas Clay, filed a motion for voluntary dismissal on July 24, six days after lawyers for the ethics commission and its members also moved to dismiss the case.—
Lucas Aulbach,
The Courier-Journal,
31 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pettifogger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pettifogger. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.
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