pettiness

P3E1T1T1I1N1E1S1S1

noun

The quality of being petty.

“The pettiness of the accounting department asking me to save a receipt from a fast-food restaurant was absurd.”

Similar
trivialityslightnesspuninesslittlenesssmallness
UncommonScrabble 11
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Meanings

nounpettiness (countable and uncountable, plural pettinesses)

plural pettinesses

  1. countableuncountableThe quality of being petty.

    The pettiness of the accounting department asking me to save a receipt from a fast-food restaurant was absurd.

  2. countableuncountableA petty behaviour, attitude, etc.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounthe quality of being unimportant and petty or frivolous

Similar
trivialityslightnesspuniness
Broader
unimportance

nounlack of generosity in trifling matters

Similar
littlenesssmallness
Broader
meannessminginessniggardliness
Also see
littlenesspuninessslightnesssmallnesstriviality

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

From petty + -ness.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Dutch kleinzieligheid
  • kleinzieligheidTranslations
German Kleinlichkeit, Kleinkariertheit
  • KleinlichkeitTranslations
  • KleinkariertheitTranslations
Greek μικρότητα
  • μικρότητα (mikrótita)Translations
Cite this entry
APA

pettiness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pettiness

MLA

“pettiness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pettiness. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pettiness,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pettiness.

Source: pettiness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.