Definitions for Petty
ˈpɛt ipet·ty

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. petit larceny, petty larceny, pettyadjective

   larceny of property having a value less than some amount (the amount varies by locale)

2. junior-grade, lower-ranking, lowly, petty(a), secondary, subalternadjective

   inferior in rank or status

   "the junior faculty"; "a lowly corporal"; "petty officialdom"; "a subordinate functionary"

3. fiddling, footling, lilliputian, little, niggling, piddling, piffling, petty, picayune, trivialadjective

   (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"

4. petty, small-mindedadjective

   contemptibly narrow in outlook

   "petty little comments"; "disgusted with their small-minded pettiness"

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. pettyadjective

   (obsolete except in set phrases) little, small, secondary in rank or importance

2. pettyadjective

   insignificant, trifling, or inconsiderable

   a petty fault

3. pettyadjective

   narrow-minded, small-minded

4. Etymology: From petit, English since the late 14th century.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. PETTYadjective

   Small; inconsiderable; inferiour; little.

   Etymology: petit, Fr.

   When he had no power;
   But was a petty servant to the state,
   He was your enemy. William Shakespeare, Coriolanus.

   It is a common experience, that dogs know the dog-killer; when, as in time of infection, some petty fellow is sent out to kill the dogs. Francis Bacon, Nat. Hist.

   It importeth not much, some petty alteration or difference it may make. Francis Bacon.

   Will God incense his ire
   For such a petty trespass. John Milton.

   From thence a thousand lesser poets sprung,
   Like petty princes from the fall of Rome. John Denham.

   They believe one only chief and great God, which hath been from all eternity; who when he proposed to make the world, made first other gods of a principal order; and after, the sun, moon and stars, as petty gods. Edward Stillingfleet.

   By all I have read of petty commonwealths, as well as the great ones, it seems to me, that a free people do of themselves divide into three powers. Jonathan Swift.

   Bolonia water’d by the petty Rhine. Addison.

   Can there an example be given, in the whole course of this war, where we have treated the pettiest prince, with whom we have had to deal, in so contemptuous a manner. Jonathan Swift, Miscellanies.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Petty

   little; trifling; inconsiderable; also, inferior; subordinate; as, a petty fault; a petty prince

FreebaseRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Petty

   Petty is an unincorporated community in Lamar County, Texas, United States. The Chisum Independent School District serves area students.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. Petty

   pet′i, adj. small: of less importance: lower in rank, power, &c.: inconsiderable, insignificant: contemptible.—adv. Pett′ily.—n. Pett′iness.—Petty cash, small sums of money received or paid; Petty larceny (see Larceny); Petty officer, a naval officer with rank corresponding to a non-commissioned officer in the army. [O. Fr. petit.]

Etymology and OriginsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Petty

   Provincial for an out-house, because its accommodation is restricted to one person; also called a “Privy,” short for private.

Surnames Frequency by Census RecordsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. PETTY

   According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Petty is ranked #1005 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
   
   The Petty surname appeared 34,882 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 12 would have the surname Petty.
   
   73.4% or 25,614 total occurrences were White.
   20.9% or 7,322 total occurrences were Black.
   2.4% or 837 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
   2.1% or 753 total occurrences were of two or more races.
   0.5% or 181 total occurrences were Asian.
   0.5% or 174 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.

How to pronounce Petty?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Petty in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Petty in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Petty in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of Petty in a Sentence

1. Alexis Charles Henri Clrel de Tocqueville:

   Nothing is quite so wretchedly corrupt as an aristocracy which has lost its power but kept its wealth and which still has endless leisure to devote to nothing but banal enjoyments. All its great thoughts and passionate energy are things of the past, and nothing but a host of petty, gnawing vices now cling to it like worms to a corpse.

2. James Clark:

   This is an hour for action, this is an hour where we must put all of our petty differences aside for our future, which is our children.

3. Sharon Cooper:

   I simply feel like the officer was picking on her, and I believe that is petty.

4. Winston Churchill:

   Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never -- in nothing, great or small, large or petty -- never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense.

5. Vladimir Lenin:

   You all know that even when women have full rights, they still remain fatally downtrodden because all housework is left to them. In most cases housework is the most unproductive, the most barbarous and the most arduous work a woman can do. It is exceptionally petty and does not include anything that would in any way promote the development of the woman.

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