1
as in minor
lacking importance
deciding what you want to do for a living is no trifling matter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in slight
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
trifling differences between the theatrical and DVD versions of the movie
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in flirting
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 playing
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 trifling
Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
The health factor is no trifling qualifier for a player who has missed time with shoulder and oblique injuries, in addition to that unfortunate incident with his pelvic floor.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Talk of mounting nuclear readiness towards Russia, which has more atomic weapons than any other country in the world, could overshadow more trifling domestic matters, like the Epstein scandal, for instance.
—Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2025
Pixar has long stood out by bringing something less trifling to theatergoing families.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 15 July 2025
And yet the movie’s insularity feels trifling and empty.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2024
The cost to find these answers, even in the near term, is relatively trifling.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2023
Aside from bacteria, the smallest genome belongs to the intestinal parasite Encephalitozoon intestinalis, with a trifling 2.3 billion base pairs.
—Kirsten Weir, Discover Magazine, 12 June 2011
With that much water needed for even the most trifling tasks, the natural question becomes: How does that water reach those data centers, let alone the world’s farms and factories?
—IEEE Spectrum, 28 May 2010
Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 7 Feb. 2026
The health factor is no trifling qualifier for a player who has missed time with shoulder and oblique injuries, in addition to that unfortunate incident with his pelvic floor.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
The aging Airy had devoted his observatory to stellar measurements that now produced trifling improvements to navigation.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
But those trifling problems aren’t for Jane to worry about.
—Ashlee Conour, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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, 19 Mar. 2026
The health factor is no trifling qualifier for a player who has missed time with shoulder and oblique injuries, in addition to that unfortunate incident with his pelvic floor.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Talk of mounting nuclear readiness towards Russia, which has more atomic weapons than any other country in the world, could overshadow more trifling domestic matters, like the Epstein scandal, for instance.
—Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2025
Pixar has long stood out by bringing something less trifling to theatergoing families.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 15 July 2025
And yet the movie’s insularity feels trifling and empty.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2024
The cost to find these answers, even in the near term, is relatively trifling.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2023
Aside from bacteria, the smallest genome belongs to the intestinal parasite Encephalitozoon intestinalis, with a trifling 2.3 billion base pairs.
—Kirsten Weir, Discover Magazine, 12 June 2011
With that much water needed for even the most trifling tasks, the natural question becomes: How does that water reach those data centers, let alone the world’s farms and factories?
—IEEE Spectrum, 28 May 2010
Verb
The rise may seem trifling, but staffers work long hours, and a caffeine budget is a necessity.
—Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 7 Feb. 2026
The health factor is no trifling qualifier for a player who has missed time with shoulder and oblique injuries, in addition to that unfortunate incident with his pelvic floor.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
The aging Airy had devoted his observatory to stellar measurements that now produced trifling improvements to navigation.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
But those trifling problems aren’t for Jane to worry about.
—Ashlee Conour, Chicago Tribune, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trifling
Adjective
-
Snitker managed numerous minor-league clubs over the years, including Richmond, Mississippi, Durham and Macon.—
Gabriel Burns,
AJC.com,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Any minor spills or leaks within this storage area are expected to be contained within the basement level.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
25 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The Knicks are slight favorites to win Game 4, and a win would flip things back around.—
Dan Santaromita,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
-
If your car is equipped with front radar or driver‑assist features, dirt on the sensor or slight misalignment from a parking‑lot bump could also be the culprit.—
Hartford Courant,
Hartford Courant,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Harper scored 27 points off the bench, flirting with the Spurs’ playoff record for most in a game by a 20-year-old.—
Jeff McDonald,
San Antonio Express-News,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Anthropic has a habit of using dramatic, alarming-sounding language that can be tough to interrogate cleanly, including flirting with the idea that its Claude model might be conscious.—
Robert Hart,
The Verge,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
When the reports surfaced that the Saudis were cutting off LIV’s funding, the league was playing a tournament in Mexico City.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Promotion to League One in just their second attempt after taking 132 years to reach the EFL is one thing, but their playing style under former Brentford and Northampton goalkeeper Andy Woodman only adds to the curiosity around them.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Ceija Stojka’s small paintings at the Drawing Center swarm with such harrowing incident that viewers may not spot the mystery in the bottom right corner of many of her canvases.—
Ben Davis,
The New York Review of Books,
25 Apr. 2026
-
The Pistons are small favorites on the road for Game 3.—
Dan Santaromita,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The bulls claim that trend justifies today’s valuations, and that EPS can keep rolling in double-digits while national income trudges at a nominal 5% or so.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Funds routed through weakly regulated financial centers, often under nominal compliance regimes, help seed narratives designed to divide Western societies and undermine political cohesion.—
Gaurav Srivastava,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Zeus did not approve of his daughter fooling around with this mortal roughneck hunter and put out a hit on Orion.—
Mike Lynch,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
-
The transition was rough for Ansari, who wasn’t fluent in English and often got in trouble for fooling around in school.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Generally, the Hilton hotel, where the dinner has taken place for years, remains open to regular guests during the correspondents’ dinner, and security has typically been focused on the ballroom and rather than the hotel at large, with little screening for people not entering the dinner itself.—
Collin Binkley,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Security has typically been focused on the ballroom — rather than the hotel at large — with little screening for people not entering the dinner itself.—
Bridget Byrne,
Baltimore Sun,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trifling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trifling. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
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