as in negligibility
the quality or state of being unimportant
the astonishing pettiness of most of the things that she fusses over
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Recent Examples of pettiness
Cole framed his opening monologue like a prayer, with jokes about Teyana Taylor’s relationship status, 50 Cent’s pettiness and Nicki Minaj’s politics.
—
Angelique Jackson, Variety, 1 Mar. 2026
Lilian liked Anna, who was on the school board, knew what was going on, and gossiped matter-of-factly with neither pettiness nor zeal.
—Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2026
Sustainable, charitable, and delightfully petty, this gift proves Valentine’s Day can support bugs, love, pettiness and conservation all at once.
—Dianne Plummer, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Here’s a good summation of the pettiness.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026
Florida has had enough of pettiness, politic stunts and petulance.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2026
The big swings through pettiness are their own form of vulnerability.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2025
Judging by Wilson’s air guitaring a Nirvana song at the postparade rally and dancing onstage with Crime Mob, one of her favorite hip-hop groups, pettiness—at least her version of it—has taken an exuberant turn.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 10 Dec. 2025
The paranoia and pettiness between coach and general manager can no longer infect the locker room with Michael Malone and Calvin Booth long since fired.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 21 Oct. 2025
Angelique Jackson, Variety, 1 Mar. 2026
Lilian liked Anna, who was on the school board, knew what was going on, and gossiped matter-of-factly with neither pettiness nor zeal.
—Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2026
Sustainable, charitable, and delightfully petty, this gift proves Valentine’s Day can support bugs, love, pettiness and conservation all at once.
—Dianne Plummer, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026
Here’s a good summation of the pettiness.
—Chris Branch, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2026
Florida has had enough of pettiness, politic stunts and petulance.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2026
The big swings through pettiness are their own form of vulnerability.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2025
Judging by Wilson’s air guitaring a Nirvana song at the postparade rally and dancing onstage with Crime Mob, one of her favorite hip-hop groups, pettiness—at least her version of it—has taken an exuberant turn.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 10 Dec. 2025
The paranoia and pettiness between coach and general manager can no longer infect the locker room with Michael Malone and Calvin Booth long since fired.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 21 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pettiness
Noun
-
Her big band from the Land tour is present on this album to draw a loud counterpoint to the protagonist’s quest for smallness and silence.—
Craig Jenkins,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Mainstream culture has consistently glorified smallness as ideal for women’s health, but the key to high performance and aging well is strength over size.—
Alexa Mikhail,
Flow Space,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Problems shrink into insignificance.—
Shilo Urban,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Nov. 2025
-
Her difficulty lay in her distance from the random violence of insignificance.—
Rachel Cusk,
New Yorker,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
All the more reason for those under this sign to embrace the softness and triviality of floral prints right before spring arrives.—
Katherine J Igoe,
InStyle,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Any piece of art begins in triviality.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pettiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pettiness. Accessed 6 Mar. 2026.
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