bagatelle

American  

[bag-uh-tel] / ˌbæg əˈtɛl /

noun

1. something of little value or importance; a trifle.

   "A mere bagatelle," she murmured in response to my admiration of her ring.

2. a game played on a board having holes at one end into which balls are to be struck with a cue.

3. pinball.

4. a short and light musical composition, typically for the piano.

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bagatelle British  

/ ˌbæɡəˈtɛl /

noun

1. something of little value or significance; trifle

2. a board game in which balls are struck into holes, with pins as obstacles; pinball

3. another name for bar billiards

4. a short light piece of music, esp for piano

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Etymology

Origin of bagatelle

First recorded in 1630–40; from French, from Italian bagat(t)ella, equivalent to bagatt(a) “small possession,” perhaps a derivative of bag(a) “berry” (from Latin bāca, bacca ) + -att(a), diminutive suffix + -ella, from Latin -illa diminutive suffix; bay ⁴

Example Sentences

But that case involved tens of thousands of dollars - a mere bagatelle compared to the monster cryptocurrency scam whose story is being told in an enthralling BBC podcast.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2019

Reynard the Fox has returned — and it is here that Handler’s bagatelle ceases to be a bagatelle.

From New York Times • Aug. 26, 2019

He felt moved, with no greater desire than to create a comic bagatelle, to see if he could out-Kanye Kanye, just as the poem declares.

From Slate • Oct. 12, 2018

But, as in the similarly revisionist bagatelle “Damsel” that came out this summer, here the filmmakers seem more interested in critiquing traditional macho notions of ambition and impunity than valorizing them.

From Washington Post • Sep. 25, 2018

He could not repress his scorn for the man who could throw away his crown for such a bagatelle as the Church of England.

From Henrietta Maria by Haynes, Henrietta