adj. (pettier, pettiest)
1. unimportant; trivial.
2 mean, small-minded; contemptible.
3 minor; inferior; on a small scale (petty princes).
4 Law (of a crime) of lesser importance (petty sessions) (cf. COMMON, GRAND).
Phrases and idioms:
petty bourgeois PETIT BOURGEOIS. petty bourgeoisie petite bourgeoisie. petty cash money from or for small items of receipt or expenditure. petty jury a jury of 12 persons who try the final issue of fact in civil or criminal cases and pronounce a verdict. petty officer a naval NCO. petty treason see TREASON.
Derivatives:
pettily adv. pettiness n.
Etymology: ME pety, var. of PETIT