trifling
Americanadjective
-
of very little importance; trivial; insignificant.
a trifling matter.
- Synonyms:
- inconsequential, slight, unimportant
- Antonyms:
- important
-
of small value, cost, or amount.
a trifling sum.
- Synonyms:
- piddling, negligible
-
frivolous; shallow; light.
trifling conversation.
-
mean; worthless.
noun
-
idle or frivolous conduct, talk, etc.
-
foolish delay or waste of time.
adjective
-
insignificant or petty
-
frivolous or idle
Related Words
See petty.
Other Word Forms
- triflingly adverb
- triflingness noun
- untrifling adjective
- untriflingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of trifling
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; see trifle, -ing 2, -ing 1
Explanation
If something is trifling it's really unimportant, of no consequence — "a trifling detail." Everything is relative, of course, and what might appear trifling to one person may take on deep importance for another. Clues are classically trifling things. As Sherlock Holmes explains to Dr. Watson when faced with a seemingly minor detail: "It is, of course, a trifle, but there is nothing so important as trifles."
Vocabulary lists containing trifling
Life of Pi
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Fever 1793
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "T" "U" "V" and "W"
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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.
But it’s the songs that talk about brushing off stifling, trifling men, including the title track and “What Have You Done For Me Lately,” that have the most staying power.
From Salon • Apr. 11, 2026
Before IMG and ProServ, athletes typically got trifling rewards for endorsing products.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 21, 2026
To state the obvious, the big picture is all this is trifling and academic because the government won by a million miles, with a majority of 120.
From BBC • Sep. 11, 2024
This cavalier treatment of tragic circumstances is of a piece with the entire musical’s approach to the hardships Annie endures—they’re treated as trifling in the face of her new life in the Warbucks mansion.
From Slate • Aug. 17, 2024
It would make the Grand Canyon look quaint and trifling.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
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.
