What does "trifle" mean?
Trifle: A dish composed of sweetmeats, fruits, cake, wine, etc., with syllabub poured over it.
Additional senses
- 2.To act or talk without seriousness, gravity, weight, or dignity; to act or talk with levity; to indulge in light or trivial amusements. They trifle, and they beat the air about nothing which toucheth us. Hooker. To trifle with, to play the fool with; to treat without respect or seriousness; to mock; as, to trifle with one's feelings, or with sacred things.
- 3.To make of no importance; to treat as a trifle. [Obs.] Shak.
- 4.To spend in vanity; to fritter away; to waste; as, to trifle away money. "We trifle time." Shak.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
- Canonical URL: https://worddirectanswers.com/answers/what-does-trifle-mean
- Steward: Jason Burns
- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00