Definitions for picayuneˌpɪk iˈyun, ˌpɪk ə-

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Random House Webster's College Dictionary

pic•a•yuneˌpɪk iˈyun, ˌpɪk ə-(adj.)pic`a•yun′ish.

  1. of little value or account; small; trifling.

    Category: Informal

  2. petty, carping, or prejudiced.

    Category: Informal

  3. (n.)(formerly, in Louisiana, Florida, etc.) a coin equal to half a Spanish real.

    Category: Numismatics

  4. any small coin, as a five-cent piece.

    Category: Numismatics

  5. an insignificant person or thing.

    Category: Informal

Origin of picayune:

1780–90; < Oc picaioun small copper coin

Princeton's WordNet

  1. fiddling, footling, lilliputian, little, niggling, piddling, piffling, petty, picayune, trivial(adj)

    (informal) small and of little importance

    "a fiddling sum of money"; "a footling gesture"; "our worries are lilliputian compared with those of countries that are at war"; "a little (or small) matter"; "a dispute over niggling details"; "limited to petty enterprises"; "piffling efforts"; "giving a police officer a free meal may be against the law, but it seems to be a picayune infraction"

Wiktionary

  1. picayune(Noun)

    A small coin of the value of six and a quarter cents; a fippenny bit.

  2. picayune(Noun)

    A five-cent piece.

  3. picayune(Noun)

    Something of very little value; a trifle: not worth a picayune.

  4. picayune(Adjective)

    Petty, trivial; of little consequence; small and of little importance; picayunish;

  5. picayune(Adjective)

    something not worth arguing about.

  6. picayune(Adjective)

    an argument, fact, corner case, or other issue raised (often intentionally) that distracts from a larger issue at hand or does not change a primary supposition, outcome, postulate, premise, conclusion, hypothesis, judgment or recommendation;

  7. picayune(Adjective)

    small-minded: being childishly spiteful, tending to go on about unimportant things.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Picayune(noun)

    a small coin of the value of six and a quarter cents. See Fippenny bit


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