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
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
Adding an additional 23,000 km is really a piddly amount.
—Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 21 Sep. 2010
Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 21 Dec. 2024
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
Adding an additional 23,000 km is really a piddly amount.
—Phil Plait, Discover Magazine, 21 Sep. 2010
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piddly
Adjective
-
The focus was to provide more attacking numbers in advanced areas to maintain territorial dominance, with a midfield pair — or ‘double pivot’ — providing the defensive foundation behind a nominal front four.—
Mark Carey,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
-
Alongside contemporaries including Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill and Maxwell, the neo-soul class focused on recapturing the live, thick instrumentation, rich songwriting and weighted, passionate delivery of its nominal genre predecessor.—
Trevor Anderson,
Billboard,
22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
As her new album opens, Brandi Carlile is having a slight argument with herself.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
28 Oct. 2025
-
The whisky is lovely despite its age (remember, sometimes older whiskies are not actually that good), with notes of caramel, licorice, mango, apple, berry, cinnamon, and a slight wisp of smoke on the palate.—
Jonah Flicker,
Robb Report,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Earth, a tiny target in the vastness of space, would often be spared from being hit by these magnetic projectiles.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Sometimes changing the world starts with a tiny needle.—
Barbara Bry,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Any petty rivalries were put aside, and in the true sense of the actor’s code, offers came to help each other read over the piece.—
Jay Glennie,
Rolling Stone,
28 Oct. 2025
-
Filmmaking is blind instinct, petty calculations, smooth generalship, daydreaming, pig-headedness, grace, bluff, risk.—
Susan Sontag,
Vogue,
26 Oct. 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
-
Visceral and tactile, the piece quietly establishes a visual language out of small seemingly insignificant moments that through subtle transformation become impactful expressions of grief and loss.—
Christian Blauvelt,
IndieWire,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Small, seemingly insignificant times like that became the foundation of our connection.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Maybe autocracy starts with something as trivial as this.—
John M. Crisp,
Twin Cities,
22 Oct. 2025
-
The trivial things become the big things because the big things have gone away.—
Essence,
Essence,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, independent artists have spent years expressing their frustrations with the paltry payouts of most DSPs.—
Jeff Ihaza,
Rolling Stone,
10 Oct. 2025
-
But those refunds were relatively paltry.—
Erin Doherty,
CNBC,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Piddly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piddly. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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