as in nominal
so small or unimportant as to warrant little or no attention
the assistant's job was to shield the president from such footling problems
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dawdling
to spend time doing nothing
spent the morning footling about while others were working
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of footling
Barton Swaim, WSJ, 21 June 2019
Adjective
By comparison with previous Establishment Clause cases, however, this lawsuit looked footling and rather mean.
—Barton Swaim, WSJ, 21 June 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for footling
Adjective
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Howe used four different left-backs last term, mainly fielding Dan Burn there (a nominal centre-back at 6ft 7in/201cm), while Newcastle were the most one-sided team in the league for crosses — over 60 per cent came from the right.—
Liam Tharme,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
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Out of all of the foreign investment sources that have pumped cash into South Florida real estate, financial institutions, and new businesses over the years, Saudi Arabia is a nation that at best has a nominal presence in the region.—
David Lyons,
Sun Sentinel,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Freud’s notion of remembering, the inexact reiteration of what came before, is where creativity emerges—that slight drift from the original that lets something unlikely slip in.—
Namwali Serpell,
The New Yorker,
8 Mar. 2025
-
Sugarcane honey is a concentrated form of sugarcane juice that has a slight licorice taste and a touch of bitterness.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes,
8 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
-
But being able to distinguish when things are challenging versus straight-up unhealthy can keep you from spiraling into petty drama and sneaky backstabbing.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
3 Mar. 2025
-
On the page, Serafina is an archetypical Williams heroine — a woman who feels the world too deeply and is therefore brutalized by its harsh truths and petty cruelties (e.g. Maggie the Cat, Blanche DuBois, Amanda Wingfield).—
EW Staff,
EW.com,
2 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
The loud ticking sound when my car is idling.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Dec. 2024
-
My heartbeat pounded in my ears, drowning out the anticipatory purr of two ambulance engines idling nearby.—
Daphne Ewing-Chow,
Forbes,
23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
And yet the movie’s insularity feels trifling and empty.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
17 Feb. 2024
-
The cost to find these answers, even in the near term, is relatively trifling.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
30 Oct. 2023
Verb
-
The course proved to be a scenic one, as Connor also encountered some local wildlife, including a crocodile lounging by the water at the 13th hole and two antelopes locked in a playful antler battle near a sand trap.—
Kevin Lynn,
Newsweek,
8 Jan. 2025
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There is also time for lounging on the Pink Beach.—
Bianca Salonga,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
My worst days were spent being transported to the courtroom shackled and isolated in a tiny cage, waiting to be summoned into trial.—
James L. Dold,
Baltimore Sun,
5 Mar. 2025
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Acupuncture and the tiny sugar pellets of homeopathy.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Footling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/footling. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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