as in nominal
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
there's only a piddly difference in price between the two paintings, so take whichever you prefer
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Recent Examples of piddly
This stole the top spot from 1993, with its piddly 76 days over 100.
—
Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 21 Dec. 2024
Adding an additional 23,000 km is really a piddly amount.
—Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 21 Sep. 2010
Online savings accounts have proliferated in recent years, offering higher yields than the piddly rates attached to ordinary savings accounts, which are less than 0.1%, on average.
—Ryan Dezember, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
Byrne is still a United States congressman and that’s no piddly thing.
—Kyle Whitmire, al, 7 Nov. 2019
This information isn't written in the controller's piddly instruction manual.
—Sam MacHkovech, Ars Technica, 16 Nov. 2018
After Kilauea's 1924 summit explosions, the volcano entered a decade of piddly rumblings, followed by 18 years of silence.
—Sophia Yan and Malcolm Ritter, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 June 2018
But sometimes self-denial is its own form of power, as you are no doubt noticing, crammed into that piddly apartment.
—Helaine Olen, Slate Magazine, 25 Jan. 2017
Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 21 Dec. 2024
Adding an additional 23,000 km is really a piddly amount.
—Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 21 Sep. 2010
Online savings accounts have proliferated in recent years, offering higher yields than the piddly rates attached to ordinary savings accounts, which are less than 0.1%, on average.
—Ryan Dezember, WSJ, 11 Nov. 2022
Byrne is still a United States congressman and that’s no piddly thing.
—Kyle Whitmire, al, 7 Nov. 2019
This information isn't written in the controller's piddly instruction manual.
—Sam MacHkovech, Ars Technica, 16 Nov. 2018
After Kilauea's 1924 summit explosions, the volcano entered a decade of piddly rumblings, followed by 18 years of silence.
—Sophia Yan and Malcolm Ritter, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 June 2018
But sometimes self-denial is its own form of power, as you are no doubt noticing, crammed into that piddly apartment.
—Helaine Olen, Slate Magazine, 25 Jan. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piddly
Adjective
-
According to expert estimates, India needs to spend around $100 billion per year, or 2.8% of current nominal GDP, to achieve net-zero power sector emissions by 2070.—
Radhika Kak, independent researcher at Harvard Business School and Varad Pande, partner at BCG,
CNBC,
20 Mar. 2025
-
Here’s why: Although technical specifications are still being worked out, the new standard could deliver nominal peak data rates of more than 40Gbps.—
PCMAG,
PCMAG,
20 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Making one bet at a slight little edge is not going to have a huge effect on someone's bracket.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
20 Mar. 2025
-
Zero Day held a slight lead with 1.84 billion minutes of viewing to 1.81 billion for Reacher.—
Rick Porter,
The Hollywood Reporter,
20 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
On the Alabama Gulf Coast, this legendary third-generation beach shack can be found in the tiny town of Elberta and is accessible by boat or car.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
29 Mar. 2025
-
The town, with colorful ochre and salmon-pink structures lining the seafront and tiny piazzas, has preserved its ancient seafaring vibe with an active harbor where fishermen live nearby and prepare for a day at sea.—
Catherine Sabino,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Gangs stop petty thievery in their own neighborhoods.—
Walter E Block,
Orange County Register,
22 Mar. 2025
-
Mixed in with small pleasures and petty disputes with her older sister are true feats of survival and bravery.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
22 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Then, the pandemic reduced the schedule to 60 games and Eddie got a piddling 37%.—
Star Tribune,
Star Tribune,
3 Dec. 2020
-
Millions of additional claims are expected to stream in from around the country over the coming weeks, while hiring remains piddling.—
Patricia Cohen,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2020
Adjective
-
His drunk mother-in-law, Nan (Jane Curtin), takes too long to share too much insignificant information.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
20 Mar. 2025
-
No matter how insignificant our individual choices may appear, our choices matter.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
What’s at risk The impact of an output such as calling a blueberry muffin a chihuahua may seem trivial, but consider the different kinds of technologies that use image recognition systems: An autonomous vehicle that fails to identify objects could lead to a fatal traffic accident.—
Anna Choi,
The Conversation,
21 Mar. 2025
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The under-the-table payments at the center of the case, which involved sums of up to $100,000, now seem trivial in comparison to the rapidly escalating figures involved in today’s NIL economy.—
Daniel Libit,
Sportico.com,
13 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The Tar Heels' defense was suffocating against West Virginia, holding them to a paltry 13-for-54 (24.1%) from the field and just 2-for-21 (9.5%) from the 3-point line.—
Ron Estes,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Mar. 2025
-
Investors are not taking chances—ACN is down 23% and the knife still falls: Even after its drop, ACN still pays a paltry 1.9%.—
Brett Owens,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Piddly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piddly. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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