trivial

trivial — adjective

1. Something that is trivial is not important, serious, or worth spending time or e

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

Something that is trivial is not important, serious, or worth spending time or energy on.

Example

Soraya was upset about a trivial comment her colleague made during the meeting.

The committee spent hours discussing trivial matters instead of the budget crisis.

collocation: trivial matters / trivial details

Common collocations
  • trivial matter
  • trivial detail
  • trivial issue
  • trivial problem
  • trivial difference
  • trivial concern
  • trivial mistake
  • seem trivial
  • consider trivial
  • dismiss as trivial
Synonyms
  • unimportant

    direct synonym; interchangeable in most contexts but less judgemental in tone

  • insignificant

    stronger emphasis on having no real impact or meaning

  • minor

    focuses on small size or degree rather than value judgement

  • petty

    negative connotation; suggests the thing is small-minded or beneath notice

Antonyms
  • important

    direct opposite; something worth serious attention

  • significant

    opposite in degree of impact or meaning

  • major

    opposite in scale or seriousness

Usage Note

Frequently used with nouns referring to details, problems, differences, or concerns — the object of trivial should be something that could matter but turns out not to.

Common Mistakes

The box was trivial and could fit in my pocket.
The box was tiny and could fit in my pocket.
"trivial" refers to value or importance, not physical size.
She had a trivial headache that lasted all day.
She had a mild headache that lasted all day.
"trivial" is about unimportance, not about the intensity of a physical sensation.

2. A problem, question, or task that is trivial is very easy to solve, deal with, o

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

A problem, question, or task that is trivial is very easy to solve, deal with, or understand — often with the suggestion that it requires almost no effort at all.

Example

For Christopher, fixing the leaky pipe was a trivial job that took minutes.

collocation: trivial job / trivial task

Renata found the first level of the game trivial and finished it quickly.

pattern: find + object + trivial

Common collocations
  • trivial problem
  • trivial question
  • trivial task
  • trivial step
  • trivial matter
  • find something trivial
  • consider something trivial
Synonyms
  • simple

    broader and more neutral; can apply to any easy task

  • straightforward

    emphasises clarity and lack of complication

  • uncomplicated

    formal; emphasises the absence of difficulty

  • easy

    the most general word; less specific than trivial

Antonyms

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1: in this sense, trivial carries no negative value judgement — it simply means something costs very little effort. Common with task nouns (problem, question, job, step, level).

Common Mistakes

The marathon was trivial for the professional runner.
The warm-up jog was trivial for the professional runner.
"trivial" is best for small, everyday tasks, not for major achievements made to look easy.

Word family

  • trivially
    adverbB2
  • triviality
    nounC1
  • trivialize
    verbC1
  • trivialization
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All five words describe something that does not matter much, but they differ in tone and scope. 'Unimportant' is the most neutral and direct — a meeting agenda item can be unimportant without being judged negatively. 'Insignificant' carries a stronger sense of having no real effect or meaning; a statistical error of 0.1% is insignificant. 'Minor' focuses on size or degree rather than value — a minor injury is small in scale, not necessarily beneath concern. 'Petty' is the most negative of the group, implying the thing is small-minded, ungenerous, or not worth a grown person's attention (petty rules, petty complaints). 'Trifling' is less common and slightly old-fashioned; it suggests something is so small that it is almost ridiculous to care about it. If you describe a budget difference as a trifling amount, you are saying it is laughably small. In everyday writing, 'unimportant' and 'minor' are safest; 'petty' is best reserved for behaviour or complaints; 'trifling' works in literary or humorous contexts.

unimportant ↗insignificantminor ↗petty ↗trifling

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • seemingly trivial
  • comparatively trivial
  • relatively trivial
  • utterly trivial

Phrases

  • dismiss something as trivial
  • reduce something to the trivial
  • trivial at first glance

Etymology

LatinEnglish

The word 'trivial' comes from Latin 'trivialis', meaning 'belonging to the crossroads' or 'ordinary, commonplace'. This in turn comes from 'trivium', which literally means 'a place where three roads meet' — from 'tri-' (three) and 'via' (road or way). In ancient Rome, crossroads were places where people gathered and exchanged everyday talk, so things discussed there were ordinary and unremarkable. Over time, the meaning shifted from 'commonplace, found everywhere' to 'unimportant, not worth considering'. The same root gives us 'trivia' (insignificant facts) and 'trivium' (the lower division of the seven liberal arts in medieval universities).