niggling
Americanadjective
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petty; trivial; inconsequential.
to quibble about a niggling difference in terminology.
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demanding too much care, attention, time, etc..
niggling chores about the house.
adjective
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petty
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fussy
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irritating
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requiring painstaking work
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persistently troubling
a niggling back pain
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of niggling
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.
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
Mr Jenkins, 56, said having to leave the home his son grew up in left him with the "niggling thought" that he did not want to "feel too comfortable, just in case" it happened again.
From BBC • Jul. 27, 2025
"If somebody has some niggling concerns and it triggers them to ask somebody, 'Are you OK?' then that would be an amazing outcome."
From BBC • Sep. 26, 2024
What was even worse than having to focus his mind on a series of niggling jobs was the need to conceal his agitation from the telescreen.
From "1984" by George Orwell
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.
