frivolous
- 1Silly, especially at the wrong time or in the wrong way; having no good reason to exist or to act as one does, or driven by a passing whim.
The senator's frivolous tone struck many listeners as jarring at a memorial for the flood victims.
Investors grew wary of a founder who seemed frivolous, launching new products on a whim and dropping them weeks later.
Similarflippant, silly, facetious, flighty, capricious
Oppositeserious, solemn, sober, earnest
Note
The word came into English from Latin frīvolus, which already meant "silly" as well as "empty, trifling, worthless." Only its ending was refitted to the familiar -ous. Both halves of the Latin survive: this one judges a person, a tone or a choice, while the "trivial" meaning judges how much a thing matters.
- 2Of little weight or importance; too slight or trivial to be worth anyone's notice.
The editor cut several frivolous details so the report could focus on the budget shortfall.
Compared with the safety problems in the building, complaints about the lobby's paint color seemed frivolous.
Similarinsignificant, minor, petty, negligible, inconsequential
Oppositeimportant, significant, serious, weighty
- 3Of a lawsuit, having no reasonable chance of success because its claim has no merit and no legal or factual support, as the party filing it knows or should know.
The company asked the court to dismiss the suit as frivolous, arguing that the plaintiff had no evidence of any contract.
Lawmakers proposed new penalties for attorneys who file frivolous lawsuits to pressure small businesses into settling.
Similarbaseless, groundless, meritless, unfounded, vexatious
Oppositemeritorious, legitimate
Note
A lawyer's term that judges a claim by what it stands on, not by the size of the stakes, so a suit can fail without being frivolous. In public debate the phrase frivolous lawsuit loosens. It is paired with junk and blamed for health-care costs, and in 1996 Paul F. Waldner of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association let minimal injuries qualify too, a drift toward the plain "trivial" sense.
Practice
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Origin
From Latin frīvolus, meaning 'silly, empty, trifling, or worthless.' Its ending was changed to match the English suffix -ous.