as in slight
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
only niggling differences between the original Broadway musical and the film version that followed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in complaining
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
you know it drives me crazy when you niggle like that
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of niggling
Kim Velsey, Curbed, 29 Aug. 2024
And yet, a niggling sense of loss remains after the season 5 finale; many of Diana’s most important moments and relationships are relegated to a handful of scenes.
—Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 10 Nov. 2022
Adjective
The sellers got slightly more than their asking price without any niggling 11th-hour negotiations.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 29 Aug. 2024
And yet, a niggling sense of loss remains after the season 5 finale; many of Diana’s most important moments and relationships are relegated to a handful of scenes.
—Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 10 Nov. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for niggling
Adjective
-
The latest consumer price index is expected to show a slight increase for October.Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024
-
The Slack survey found a slight increase in AI usage, up one percentage point between March and August 2024 for US respondents (32% to 33%).Emily Dreibelbis Forlini, PCMAG, 12 Nov. 2024
Verb
-
There had been a protest of several thousand people complaining about the flaunting of wealth that the America’s Cup represents.George Allen, Robb Report, 21 Oct. 2024
-
Leave none standing, none breathing, none whining and complaining and being useless and miserable all the time.Erik Kain, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
Adjective
-
The sponsor's fee is set at an annual nominal rate of 0.40% of the euro in the Trust.Quartz Bot, Quartz, 7 Nov. 2024
-
And, on a more abstract level, a 4.2% 10-year yield isn’t out of line with a U.S. economy now operating at a 5.5% nominal GDP growth pace (based on current GDP tracking models and prevailing headline inflation rates).Michael Santoli, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2024
Adjective
-
There is a long tradition of petty smuggling in the region.Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024
-
Despite the emotional celebration, the Raptors’ Global Ambassador still had some petty energy to put into the air.Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 4 Nov. 2024
Adjective
-
Persistent back pain is another indicator – this, too, is the result of tiny fractures or compression of the spine.Jianying Zhang, Discover Magazine, 8 Nov. 2024
-
But for the film, Caldwell and Honnold spent 38 days biking 2,320 miles from his home in Estes Park, Colorado, to the tiny town of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, where the roadway ends.Jayme Moye, Outside Online, 8 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near niggling
Cite this Entry
“Niggling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/niggling. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share