trifle

[ trahy-fuhl ]

/ ˈtraɪ fəl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR trifle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an article or thing of very little value.

a matter, affair, or circumstance of trivial importance or significance.

a small, inconsiderable, or trifling sum of money.

a small quantity or amount of anything; a little: She's still a trifle angry.

a literary, musical, or artistic work of a light or trivial character having no great or lasting merit; bagatelle.

a kind of pewter of medium hardness.

trifles, articles made of this.

English Cooking. a dessert usually consisting of custard and cake soaked in wine or liqueur, and jam, fruit, or the like.

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

to deal lightly or without due seriousness or respect: Don't trifle with me!

to play or toy by handling or fingering: He sat trifling with a pen.

to act or talk in an idle or frivolous way.

to pass time idly or frivolously; waste time; idle.

verb (used with object), tri·fled, tri·fling.

to pass or spend (time) idly or frivolously (usually followed by away).

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transliterate

to remove or destroy all traces of.

to change (letters, words, etc.), into corresponding characters of another alphabet or language.

to explain in terms that can be more easily understood.

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Origin of trifle

1175–1225; (noun) Middle English tru(f)fle idle talk, deceit < Old French, variant of truf(f)e mockery, deceit; (v.) Middle English treoflen to mock < Old French trufler to make sport of

SYNONYMS FOR trifle

1 bauble, toy.

13 fritter.

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OTHER WORDS FROM trifle

tri·fler, noun

Words nearby trifle

trifacial neuralgia, trifecta, triffid, trifid, trifid foot, trifle, trifling, trifluoperazine, trifluoride, trifluorochloromethane, trifluralin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for trifled

And a sharp chicken beak is nothing to be trifled with either.
What Did TJ Mean By “Pursuit of Happiness,” Anyway?|P. J. O’Rourke|June 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I have trifled away life—hated it at times; but now I will begin to live.
It May Be True, Vol. II (of III)|Mrs. Wood
That you may know how little we are to be trifled with, we send you their ears in proof that we have kept our word.
Jack Harkaway and His Son's Escape From the Brigand's of Greece|Bracebridge Hemyng
The imagination of ones pupils is not to be trifled with, Alexandre Alexandrovich.
The White Terror and The Red|Abraham Cahan

Miss Drummond was inexorable where health was concerned, and would not allow colds to be trifled with.
A Fourth Form Friendship|Angela Brazil
"I'm not to be trifled with, Phil," said Lynch, taking a small Derringer pistol from his pocket.
Plane and Plank|Oliver Optic

British Dictionary definitions for trifled

trifle

/ (ˈtraɪfəl) /

noun

a thing of little or no value or significance

a small amount; bita trifle more enthusiasm

British a cold dessert made with sponge cake spread with jam or fruit, soaked in wine or sherry, covered with a custard sauce and cream, and decorated

a type of pewter of medium hardness

articles made from this pewter

verb

(intr usually foll by with) to deal (with) as if worthless; dallyto trifle with a person's affections

to waste (time) frivolously

Derived forms of trifle

trifler, noun

Word Origin for trifle

C13: from Old French trufle mockery, from trufler to cheat

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

trifle

noun

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

verb (used with object), tri·fled, tri·fling.

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Origin of trifle

SYNONYMS FOR trifle

OTHER WORDS FROM trifle

Words nearby trifle

Words related to trifled

Example sentences from the Web for trifled

British Dictionary definitions for trifled

noun

verb

Derived forms of trifle

Word Origin for trifle