definitions

pettifog

[ pet-ee-fog, -fawg ]
/ ˈpɛt iˌfɒg, -ˌfɔg /
|

verb (used without object), pet·ti·fogged, pet·ti·fog·ging.

to bicker or quibble over trifles or unimportant matters.
to carry on a petty, shifty, or unethical law business.
to practice chicanery of any sort.

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Nearby words

petticoat, petticoat breeches, petticoat insulator, petticoat narcissus, petticoated, pettifog, pettifogger, pettifogging, pettily, petting, petting zoo

Origin of pettifog

1605–15; back formation from pettifogger, equivalent to petty + fogger < Middle Low German voger or Middle Dutch voeger one who arranges things; akin to Old English gefōg a joining
Related formspet·ti·fog·ger, nounpet·ti·fog·ger·y, noun
Can be confusedambulance chaser mouthpiece pettifogger shyster
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pettifoggery

  • What then is pettifoggery but a way of utilizing something established without doing away with it?

    The Ego and His Own|Max Stirner

  • Poor Athenians who are accused of pettifoggery and sophistry!

    The Ego and His Own|Max Stirner

  • It was with pettifoggery and intrigues that Greek liberty ended.

    The Ego and His Own|Max Stirner

British Dictionary definitions for pettifoggery

pettifog

/ (ˈpɛtɪˌfɒɡ) /

verb -fogs, -fogging or -fogged

(intr) to be a pettifogger
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012