# trivial

/ˈtɹɪviəɫ/ (US) · /tɹˈɪvɪəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/trivial
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. unimportant

adjective · CEFR B2

not important or not worth worrying about.

For teachers: of little value or importance; insignificant in the context of a larger discussion or problem.

- They argued over a trivial mistake that didn't really change the final result.
- The committee spent hours debating trivial details of the budget while ignoring the massive deficit in the primary accounts.

### 2. easy to solve

adjective · CEFR B2

very easy to do or understand.

For teachers: so easy or obvious that it requires little thought to resolve.

- For an expert like him, fixing the computer was a trivial task.
- The solution to the first puzzle was trivial, but the subsequent challenges required advanced lateral thinking skills.

### 3. mathematical simplicity

adjective · CEFR C1 · Technical

describing a very simple case, like the number zero, that is always true but not very interesting.

For teachers: relating to the simplest possible case of a mathematical structure, such as a solution where all variables are zero.

- The equation has a trivial solution where x equals zero.
- While the trivial solution is mathematically valid, the researchers were interested in finding non-zero values that satisfied the theorem.

Usage: Often used to describe a solution that is technically correct but provides no useful information.

### 4. biological naming

adjective · CEFR C2 · Technical

relating to the specific name of a plant or animal species.

For teachers: designating the specific name of a species as opposed to its broader genus.

- In the name Homo sapiens, 'sapiens' is the trivial name.
- The scientist noted that the trivial name of the specimen had been changed several times since its initial discovery in the nineteenth century.

## Examples

- I don't want to waste time on trivial matters.
- The manager dismissed the complaint as trivial, focusing instead on the major budget shortfall.
- While the individual errors seemed trivial in isolation, their cumulative effect over several months led to a significant loss of data integrity across the entire system.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.