All 5 Uses
trifle
in
For Esme:--with Love and Squalor
(Auto-generated)
- Clay looked surprised, almost a trifle hurt.
*trifle = little
- A couple of the very youngest children dragged the tempo a trifle, but in a way that only the composer's mother could have found fault with.†
- I was getting a trifle posture-conscious and I sat up somewhat straighter in my seat.†
- "Yes," she said, a trifle grimly.†
- He sat back a trifle in his chair and smoked without any sense of taste.†
Definitions:
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(1)
(trifle as in: a trifling matter) something of small importance; or a small quantity
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(2)
(trifle with as in: trifle with her affections) to treat somebody or something thoughtlessly or without respect
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(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) A trifle can refer to a kind of dessert. In classic literature, trifling can be a synonym for small talk.