Reverse Dictionary: PETTY

ADJECTIVES
1579 PALTING petty, trifling, paltry → obs. exc. Eng. dial.
E17.. PUISNE small, insignificant, petty → obs.
1605 DORTY spoiled, pettish, sullen, sulky, easily offended, ill-humoured; saucy, haughty, conceited, proud, stubborn; contemptuous → Sc.
1623 PUSILL small, insignificant, petty → obs.
1674 SIDY surly, moody, pettish → Eng. dial. obs.
1792 PIMPING petty, mean → Amer. dial.
1794 SCABBED mean, paltry, worthless, petty; ill-looking, shabby → Sc. & Eng. dial.
L18.. FRIGGING insignificant, petty, worthless → sl.
19C.. KIDLING petty, insignificant → Eng. dial.
19C.. STRUMMY pettish, sullen → Sc.
1810 TIFFY pettish, ill-humoured
1813 PICAYUNE mean, petty → US & Can. colloq.
1825 STRUNTY short-tempered, easily offended, sulky, out of humour, pettish, huffy → Sc. & Eng. dial.
1834 PINHOOK petty, small-time → Amer. dial.
M19. NIGGLING irritatingly petty; intrinsically unimportant but time and energy consuming → sl.
M19. ONE-PUB insignificant, petty → sl., orig. US
1852 PICAYUNISH mean, petty → US & Can. colloq.
1855 TIFFISH ready to take offense; pettish, peevish → colloq.
1865 MARRED spoiled, petted, over-indulged; pettish, peevish → Eng. dial.
1870 TWO-BIT of little value or significance; petty, small-time → Amer. dial.
1871 SNIFTY disdainful, haughty, fault-finding; petty, mean → Amer. sl.
1882 SANSHACH precise, pettish, peevish → Eng. dial.
1886 TIN mean, petty, worthless, counterfeit, false
1887 TWO-BY-FOUR of little value or significance; petty, small-time; small → Amer. dial.
1892 UPPISH-LIKE pettish, easily provoked; passionate → Eng. dial.
1898 BANGIE irritable, quarrelsome, pettish → Sc. (Bk.)
20C.. CHICKEN strictly conventional in conduct; following rules too closely, esp. Army; misusing authority; petty, mean → US sl.
1905 MARDY spoiled, petted, over-indulged; pettish, peevish → Eng. dial. (Bk.)
1905 PADDLING trifling, petty; useless → Sc. (Bk.)
1905 PADGELLING trifling, petty → Eng. dial. (Bk.)
1905 PAPPANT rendered pettish by indulgence → Sc. (Bk.)
1905 TIGGY pettish → Sc. (Bk.)
1930 TANK TOWN insignificant, petty → US sl.
1940 NICKEL-AND-DIME petty, small-time, insignificant → US sl.
1950 HENNY fussy, petty, finicky → Amer. dial.
1950 NIGGLY ill-tempered; obsessed with irrelevancies and petty problems → sl.
1952 PISS-ANT insignificant, worthless, petty; contemptible → sl.
1960 NICKEL-DIME small-time, petty, insignificant → US sl.
1971 PINHOOKISH petty, small-time → Amer. dial.
1971 PISSY-ANT petty, insignificant, unimportant → Amer. dial.
1990 NICKEL SLICK petty, insignificant, esp. in the context of attempting to do something beyond one’s abilities → African-American sl.
1995 CHICKENSHIT petty, insignificant → sl., orig. US


NOUNS
1596 TITMOUSE a small, petty, or insignificant person or thing
1619 PUSILLITY littleness, pettiness → obs.
1727 TIFF a slight outburst or fit of temper, pettishness, or ill-humour
1790 MIFF a slight quarrel or misunderstanding; a tiff; a fit of ill-humour, pettishness; a huff → Sc. & Eng. dial.
19C.. STRAMULLION a fit of ill-humour or bad temper; a display of pettishness → Sc.
1865 NAGGLE pettiness
1905 SMALL FRY applied to persons or things, and signifying petty, mean, or contemptible → Amer. dial. (Bk.)
1905 SMALL POTATOES applied to persons or things, and signifying petty, mean, or contemptible → Amer. dial. (Bk.)
1911 BOGLE-BO a pettish humour → Sc. (Bk.)


NOUNS, PERSON
1579 TOM THUMB a dwarf or pygmy of popular tradition or fable; hence, a dwarf or diminutive male person; also contemptuously, a petty or insignificant person
1596 TITMOUSE a small, petty, or insignificant person or thing
1905 MEG DORTS a pettish young woman → Sc. (Bk.)
1910 SNITCH a contemptible person; one who is petty or mean 
1912 SARDINE an insignificant or contemptible person; a petty character → Amer. dial. (Bk.)
1932 CHAPULIN a person of a mean or petty disposition → Amer. dial.


VERBS
1602 GALL to annoy, to vex, to irritate, to hurt in feeling; to chafe, to fret, to become pettish
1905 URP to become pettish → Sc. (Bk.)
1930 NICKEL-AND-DIME IT to act in a petty manner → US sl.
1972 REARRANGE THE DECK CHAIRS to focus on petty matters while ignoring major problems → US sl.
1972 — REARRANGE THE DECK CHAIRS ON THE TITANIC to focus on petty matters while ignoring major problems → US sl.