as in trivialities
something of little importance
let us not speak of trifles when our nation may be going to war
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in flirts
to show a sexual attraction for someone just for fun
do not trifle with me unless you mean to ask me to marry you
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in plays
to spend time in aimless activity
spent a lazy afternoon trifling on the front porch
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of trifles
Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Jan. 2026
Sky-high trifles, rich and creamy puddings, homemade candy– the holidays are a great time for decadent desserts.
—Krissy Tiglias, Southern Living, 13 Nov. 2025
Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 21 Dec. 2025
Strawberries are delicious in cobblers, trifles, and crisps.
—Nancy Lebrun, Verywell Health, 4 Aug. 2025
Noun
Enjoy them as-is, in fruit trifles or parfaits, as part of a fruit salsa or salad, or blended into smoothies.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Jan. 2026
Sky-high trifles, rich and creamy puddings, homemade candy– the holidays are a great time for decadent desserts.
—Krissy Tiglias, Southern Living, 13 Nov. 2025
Verb
Bake off scraps of pie dough (either plain or with a sprinkling of cinnamon-sugar) until golden and crisp, then crumble into sundaes, parfaits, trifles, and more.
—Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 21 Dec. 2025
Strawberries are delicious in cobblers, trifles, and crisps.
—Nancy Lebrun, Verywell Health, 4 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trifles
Verb
-
While waiting for flights to resume, Charli’s character Bethany flirts with the idea of blowing up her life by rekindling a romance with an old friend who owns a flower shop in Warsaw.—
Cheyenne Roundtree,
Rolling Stone,
10 Feb. 2026
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Delivered with an ease that flirts with comedy, it can be taken as humor punctuating drama.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Because all 12 vertebrae of your thoracic spine (middle segment) connect to your rib cage, rib mobility plays a central role in how your spine moves and how forces are managed through your back.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
15 Feb. 2026
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Besides being crucial for winter sports events, snow plays many other important roles, said David Robinson, New Jersey State Climatologist and a distinguished professor in the Rutgers University geography department.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
15 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The same report found that these fires are worsening air quality in many part of the country due to wildfire smoke, which is a mixture of gases, water vapor, air pollutants and fine particulate matter.—
Mary Kekatos,
ABC News,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Jay Mitchell’s deputy, Jennifer Carbajal, and a woman named Jennifer Sanchez, identified in local news reports as her ex-wife, also received $267,000 for smoke and ash cleaning and for flooding at a consulting business in Pendaries, New Mexico, the records show.—
Michael Collins,
USA Today,
14 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
In a world of deepfakes, ersatz eye contact is small beer.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Of course, a pipeline is small beer compared to the world’s largest island, Greenland, laden with energy resources and rare earths.—
Llewellyn King,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trifles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trifles. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
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