pettifogging

adjective

Definition of pettifoggingnext
as in slight
old-fashioned worrying too much about details that are minor or not important pettifogging lawyers

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pettifogging
  1. slight
  2. petty
  3. tiny
  4. minute
  5. trifling
  6. little
  7. trivial
  8. piddling
Adjective
  • Storms could be severe, with a level 2 out of 5; a slight risk is in place.
    — Laura Bannon, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
  • However, recent August polling shows Democrats are making ground on Republicans — still within the poll's margin of error — but with Talarico having a slight edge over Paxton.
    — Mateo Rosiles, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of slight
Adjective
  • Trump will depart sooner or later, the banners will be torn down and much of his petty talk will be and should be forgotten.
    — Letters to the Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The players air their grievances, which are essentially a pile of petty conflicts and resentments that, as Alice warned, can be traced back to the team fracturing into cliques.
    — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of petty
Adjective
  • The Moon’s awkward angle to Venus this morning may bring tiny mismatches around timing, mood, or social plans, but nothing needs to become a big deal.
    — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Aug. 2026
  • One such collection of it-narratives survives in the form of the tiny manuscript books authored by children associated with the prominent New England Hale family.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of tiny
Adjective
  • Some people even enjoy minute quantities as a recreational drug.
    — Mattha Busby, Rolling Stone, 19 Aug. 2026
  • There are so many models out there from so many manufacturers, with minute differences between them.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 25 June 2026
Definition of minute
Adjective
  • In less trifling hands, there’s no telling what these tools could do, are doing now.
    — CHRIS COLIN, Wired News, 18 May 2026
  • Meanwhile, that global temperature record that DiCaprio mentioned in his acceptance speech in 2016 seems almost trifling compared to what has happened since.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Definition of trifling
Adjective
  • Big picture The league and the union are meeting regularly on various topics, but their disagreement on core economics — whether to move to a cap system — leaves little room for progress on the major issues.
    — Evan Drellich, New York Times, 28 Aug. 2026
  • But that bipartisan effort was immediately panned by conservative groups, and little else has emerged as a serious solution.
    — Ashley Lopez, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of little
Adjective
  • The trivial and the momentous can be connected; small deviations can set us on larger paths.
    — Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2026
  • But resorting to litigation rather than negotiating a settlement to this trivial dispute could open a new source of pain.
    — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of trivial
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
Definition of piddling
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.

Browse Nearby Words

pettifoggers
pettifogging
pettiness
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Cite this Entry

“Pettifogging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pettifogging. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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