- frivolous
- frivolous mid-15c., from L. frivolus "silly, empty, trifling, worthless, brittle," dim. of *frivos "broken, crumbled," from friare "break, rub away, crumble." Related: Frivolously; frivolousness.
Etymology dictionary. 2014.
frivolous
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frivolous — friv·o·lous / fri və ləs/ adj: lacking in any arguable basis or merit in either law or fact ◇ In an attempt to discourage frivolous lawsuits, Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires the signature of an attorney or party on any… … Law dictionary
Frivolous — Friv o*lous, a. [L. frivolus; prob. akin to friare to rub, crumble, E. friable: cf. F. frivole.] [1913 Webster] 1. Of little weight or importance; not worth notice; slight; as, a frivolous argument. Swift. [1913 Webster] 2. Given to trifling;… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
frivolous — [friv′ə ləs] adj. [ME < frivol (< OFr frivole < L frivolus, fragile, silly, akin to friare: see FRIABLE) + OUS] 1. of little value or importance; trifling; trivial 2. not properly serious or sensible; silly and light minded; giddy [a… … English World dictionary
frivolous — [adj] trivial, silly barmy*, childish, dizzy*, empty headed*, facetious, featherbrained*, flighty, flip, flippant, foolish, gay, giddy*, harebrained*, idiotic, idle, ill considered, impractical, juvenile, light, light minded, minor, niggling*,… … New thesaurus
frivolous — ► ADJECTIVE 1) not having any serious purpose or value. 2) (of a person) carefree and superficial. DERIVATIVES frivolity noun frivolously adverb frivolousness noun. ORIGIN Latin frivolus silly, trifling … English terms dictionary
frivolous — [[t]frɪ̱vələs[/t]] 1) ADJ GRADED If you describe someone as frivolous, you mean they behave in a silly or light hearted way, rather than being serious and sensible. I just decided I was a bit too frivolous to be a doctor... Isabelle was a… … English dictionary
frivolous — adj. frivolous to + inf. (it was frivolous of him to make such an accusation) * * * [ frɪvələs] frivolous to + inf. (it was frivolous of him to make such an accusation) … Combinatory dictionary
frivolous — frivolously, adv. frivolousness, n. /friv euh leuhs/, adj. 1. characterized by lack of seriousness or sense: frivolous conduct. 2. self indulgently carefree; unconcerned about or lacking any serious purpose. 3. (of a person) given to trifling or… … Universalium
frivolous — adjective /ˈfɹɪv.əl.əs/ a) Silly, especially at an inappropriate time or in an inappropriate manner. , There is no easy definition for the phrase frivolous lawsuit, but I imagine any claim for damages where the injuries are minimal or where the… … Wiktionary
frivolous — adjective 1) a frivolous girl Syn: skittish, flighty, giddy, silly, foolish, superficial, shallow, irresponsible, thoughtless, featherbrained, empty headed, peabrained, birdbrained, vacuous, vapid; informal dizzy, dippy … Thesaurus of popular words
