niggle

American  

[nig-uhl] / ˈnɪg əl /

verb (used without object)

• niggles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• niggled,
  past participle,  past
• niggling
  present participle

1. to criticize, especially constantly or repeatedly, in a peevish or petty way; carp.

   to niggle about the fine points of interpretation; preferring to niggle rather than take steps to correct a situation.

2. to spend too much time and effort on inconsequential details.

   It's difficult to be meticulous and not niggle.

3. to work ineffectively; trifle.

   to niggle with an uninteresting task.

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niggle British  

/ ˈnɪɡəl /

verb

1. (intr) to find fault continually

2. (intr) to be preoccupied with details; fuss

3. (tr) to irritate; worry

---

noun

1. a slight or trivial objection or complaint

2. a slight feeling as of misgiving, uncertainty, etc

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• niggler
  noun
• niggly
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• niggling
  present
• niggled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• niggle
  simple
• niggles
  simple
• have niggled
  perfect
• has niggled
  perfect
• am niggling
  progressive
• are niggling
  progressive
• is niggling
  progressive
• have been niggling
  perfect progressive
• has been niggling
  perfect progressive

Past

• niggled
  simple
• had niggled
  perfect
• was niggling
  progressive
• were niggling
  progressive
• had been niggling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will niggle
  simple
• will have niggled
  perfect
• will be niggling
  progressive
• will have been niggling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of niggle

1610–20; < Scandinavian; compare Norwegian nigla to be penurious (ultimately < Old Norse hnøggr stingy, cognate with Old English hnēaw ); cf. niggard

Explanation

To niggle means to argue over petty things, like battling over who gets the front seat or bickering about who's turn it is to take out the garbage. To niggle is to squabble over something silly or even to persistently nag or worry someone to death. Etymologists believe the verb niggle could be from Scandinavian roots, but there's no point quibbling over its unclear origin. All you need to know is that niggling is largely annoying to all involved.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

niggle niggles niggled niggling

She arrived carrying a slight niggle, and a minor injury that kept her out of October's England camp has slowed her progress.

From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2025

"I think he'll power through even if he has a little niggle," said Brook.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2025

Mbappe had received treatment for a "small niggle" in his right ankle picked up playing for Real Madrid last weekend.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2025

The only real moment of concern for the 2021 US Open champion was when she appeared to be bothered by a back niggle in the second set.

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2025

With a niggle of unease, Jesper wondered what else Rollins might have told Kaz.

From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo

"I had a slow start to the season, picking up a few niggles on international duty and then being left out of the England squad," he said.

From BBC ● May 15, 2026

Even small niggles can mean players miss two or three games.

From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2025

Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue are the spare quicks in the squad after Stokes struggled with various niggles.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2025

In 2023, after a succession of niggles, Jack Draper said he hated "being the guy who is injured a lot".

From BBC ● Jan. 18, 2025

He hasn't suffered repeated serious injuries, like Rhian Brewster, just regular niggles that mean he has not started more than three games in a row all season.

From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2024

She said concerns around the situation have "niggled" her since.

From BBC ● Feb. 12, 2026

Although his knee completely gave up on him when the stakes were highest, it has allowed Aspinall to have surgery, solving a problem which has niggled away at him for his entire UFC career.

From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2023

Football, or that part of it that professes to have a conscience, breathed a huge sigh of relief but as it did so, some still small voice perhaps niggled.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 24, 2020

The exclusion crushed Kral, and something else niggled him.

From New York Times ● Jul. 30, 2020

A small sadness niggled at the back of her mind: this meant Joe would not be coming home until the end of the summer.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

In a maelstrom, one might think such niggling questions of jurisdiction and their attendant turf wars would be set aside.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

On a separate farewell podcast for paid subscribers, Maron and his longtime producer Brendan McDonald explained that the relentless workload was tiring and articulated a niggling feeling that the show belonged to a different era.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026

The prospect of cuts has helped push world markets ever higher this year, offsetting niggling worries about stretched valuations in the tech sector.

From Barron's ● Dec. 29, 2025

However Michelle told the BBC it kept niggling away at the back of her mind.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2025

That afternoon Bull returned home early, too excited about the game with Peninsula to concentrate on the niggling administrative details that caused him more annoyance than any other element in his role as squadron commander.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy