negligible
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of negligible
Explanation
When something is meaningless or insignificant because it is so little, it's negligible. The amount of interest you'll get on your savings is negligible, so you might as well spend your money. If you work really hard on something, but the praise you get for it is negligible, you won't try so hard next time. Besides meaning very small, negligible can mean unimportant or not worth paying attention to. If you get into a fender-bender, you've gotten into a car accident with negligible damage. School concert programs always offer a word of thanks to the principal and other members of the administration whose role in the concert seems to be negligible.
Vocabulary lists containing negligible
Essential English Vocabulary, List 2
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "N"
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It's the Little Things: Synonyms for "Small"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Even though this happens on such a negligible scale, it really makes very little impact on the acute housing crisis."
From BBC • Jul. 8, 2026
Verizon had a negligible weighting in the index due to its low stock price.
From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026
However, Swanson says that swapping those for recycled materials outputs a relatively negligible difference in emissions impact, largely due to the process behind producing them.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026
Gallrein has been a negligible presence on the campaign trail.
From Slate • May 19, 2026
In Rusty’s case, the evidence was negligible; he had merely been found at Rivonia with the others.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
