picayune

/,piki'ju:n/

Thân thiện

A city councilor dismissed the complaint as a picayune matter.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Trivial, insignificant, of little value or importance: "picayune" describes something that is small, petty, or not worthy of serious consideration. It often implies that concern over such a matter is excessive or nitpicking.
   • Mean, contemptible: In a more dated or specific sense, it can describe something or someone as being of low, mean, or contemptible character.

Usage

The word "picayune" is primarily used as an adjective in informal or slightly formal contexts to dismiss something as unimportant, petty, or overly concerned with minor details. It carries a negative connotation, suggesting that the subject is not worth the attention or fuss being given to it.

Examples

• Adjective:
  • The committee wasted an hour arguing over picayune details in the meeting's agenda.
  • He was known for his picayune criticisms that never addressed the main issue.
  • After the hurricane, our damaged fence seemed a picayune concern compared to our neighbors' lost homes.

Advanced Usage

• "picayune infraction": A very minor or trivial violation of a rule or law.
  • The city's ordinance against feeding pigeons is rarely enforced; it's considered a picayune infraction.

Variants and Related Words

• Picayunish (adj., rare): Having the characteristics of being picayune; overly concerned with trivial details.
  • His picayunish editing style focused more on commas than on content.

Synonyms

• Petty: Of little importance; trivial.
• Trivial: Of little value or importance.
• Inconsequential: Not important or significant.
• Negligible: So small or unimportant as to be not worth considering.
• Paltry: Ridiculously or insultingly small.

Antonyms

• Important: Of great significance or value.
• Significant: Sufficiently great or important to be worthy of attention.
• Substantial: Of considerable importance, size, or worth.
• Major: Important, serious, or significant.

Idioms and Phrases

• No direct idioms are commonly formed with "picayune." The word itself often functions within a phrase to label something as minor, e.g., "a picayune matter," "picayune regulations."

Học thuật

Adjective

1. (informal) small and of little importance
   • a fiddling sum of money
   • a footling gesture
   • our worries are lilliputian compared with those of countries that are at war
   • a little (or small) matter
   • a dispute over niggling details
   • limited to petty enterprises
   • piffling efforts
   • giving a police officer a free meal may be against the law, but it seems to be a picayune infraction