petty
Example Sentences
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As a single, childless woman, I’ve also been on the receiving end of some petty remarks about how “easy” my life must be because I don’t have any “real” responsibilities.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
Elaine Forbes, 53, was charged Tuesday with one count of prowling on private property, two counts of lodging without an owner’s consent and one count of petty theft, according to Marin County Superior Court records.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
Or was his quest for power rooted in sheer petty selfishness?
From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026
"That's one of my favourite things," she says "I can write a song about being petty or jealous or super insecure, and I get it off my chest in a way that seems productive."
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026
“You all think I’ve got time for your petty crap? This is the team now! Whether you like it or not...as a matter of fact, I don’t care if you don’t like it,” Coach continued.
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
It doesn’t get any pettier and mean-girlie than “Did she sandblast her face or something? It’s very waxy.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2025
Listen, I’m sure there will be a lot of sturm und drang about what the whistleblower disclosures mean for Elon Musk’s Twitter deal, but I want to focus on something dumber and pettier: Jack Dorsey.
From The Verge ● Aug. 23, 2022
But because Doncic is an NBA all-star, his true intent probably was pettier — an insinuation that the refs were on the Suns’ payroll.
From Washington Post ● May 10, 2022
It’s a juicy lineup of familiar characters who are greedier and pettier than those that usually populate historical epics.
From New York Times ● Oct. 13, 2021
The pettier Upper Self withdrew ashamed, passing over the reins of conduct into those mighty, shadowy hands.
From A Prisoner in Fairyland by Algernon Blackwood
The show finds ways to expose the worst in its characters, their pettiest, most vengeful, greediest parts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
It’s elementary: Characters can do outlandish things, commit outrageous crimes, be inspired by the pettiest of motives.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 30, 2025
Furst insisted no topic is off the table, from the pettiest accusation to the most serious charge.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 21, 2023
Know this about the greatest teams: They’re the pettiest, most punctilious outfits you ever saw.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 13, 2023
On the other hand, no one approaches him in the power of touching some rich chord of feeling by help of the pettiest incident.
From Hours in a Library New Edition, with Additions. Vol. II (of 3) by Sir Leslie Stephen
Vocabulary lists containing petty
"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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I Am Malala
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Even More Negative Words to Describe a Person
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