piffling

[ pif-ling ]

/ ˈpɪf lɪŋ /

adjective

of little worth; trifling; piddling: piffling efforts.

Nearby words

Origin of piffling

First recorded in 1890–95; piffle + -ing²

Definition for piffling (2 of 2)

piffle

[ pif-uh l ]

/ ˈpɪf əl /

Informal.

noun

nonsense, as trivial or senseless talk.

verb (used without object), pif·fled, pif·fling.

to talk nonsense.

Origin of piffle

First recorded in 1840–50; perhaps akin to puff

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for piffling

Maybe it's only a piffling pocket, and we'll get souped for our pains.
The Trail of '98|Robert W. Service
Earthly marriages are piffling in comparison with that ceremony.
The Skylark of Space|Edward Elmer Smith and Lee Hawkins Garby
Why don't you cut out all this piffling holy talk and go in for something you can do?
The Preacher of Cedar Mountain|Ernest Thompson Seton
This was no piffling little Gizeh pyramid, no simple tomb for a king.
The Sky Is Falling|Lester del Rey

Well; first, I knew my daughter couldn't be the piffling lunatic who does your war cookery articles.
The Title|Arnold Bennett

British Dictionary definitions for piffling (1 of 2)

piffling

/ (ˈpɪflɪŋ) /

adjective

worthless, trivial

British Dictionary definitions for piffling (2 of 2)

piffle

/ (ˈpɪfəl) informal /

noun

nonsenseto talk piffle

verb

(intr) to talk or behave feebly

Word Origin for piffle

C19: origin uncertain

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

Word Origin and History for piffling

piffle

1847, of unknown origin, perhaps an alteration of trifle, by influence of piddle, etc. Or perhaps imitative of a puff of air, with a diminutive suffix. As a noun by 1890.