small beer

noun

1. weak beer.
2. Chiefly British Slang. matters or persons of little or no importance.

small beer

noun

1. informal.
   people or things of no importance

Word History and Origins

Origin of small beer¹

First recorded in 1560–70

Idioms and Phrases

Also, small potatoes . Of little importance, as in Don't listen to Henry; he's small beer , or It's silly to worry about that bill; it's small potatoes . The first term alludes to a beer of low alcoholic content (also called light beer today) and was used metaphorically by Shakespeare in several plays. The variant may have been invented by frontiersman Davy Crockett; it was first recorded in 1836. Also see small fry , def. 2.

Example Sentences

All this is small beer compared with the supergrass that BCL Burton Copeland may turn out to be.

From The Daily Beast

Like most of our public figures and celebrities, our “most wanted” criminals are small beer.

From The Daily Beast

The sour Medoc was sparingly drunk, mixed with sugar and water; some drank home-brewed small beer, the majority only water.

From Project Gutenberg

There was something superb in it, something heroically mad—not the sordid drunkenness of small beer.

From Project Gutenberg

He seemed but half awake; and it was with drowsy voice that he called for a cup of cold small beer.

From Project Gutenberg

The stump of a cabbage, and the proverb means much the same thing as "Spare no expense, bring another bottle of small beer."

From Project Gutenberg

As often as I called for small-beer, the master tipped the wink, and the servant brought me a brimmer of October.

From Project Gutenberg