🇫🇷French Source WordCode: FR

tenace

Pronunciation / Transliteration: tə.nas

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Niggling/ˈnɪɡ.əl.ɪŋ/
adjectivenounCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #8500 frequency
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🇫🇷 Example Sentence in French:

"Il ressentait un doute tenace."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As adjective
  1. 1

    Causing slight but persistent annoyance, discomfort, or anxiety.

    "She had a niggling doubt about whether she had locked the front door."
  2. 2

    Trivial and persistent; petty.

    "The team was distracted by a series of niggling technical problems."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the verb 'niggle', which likely originates from Scandinavian roots such as Old Norse 'nigla' meaning to fuss or be niggardly. It entered the English language in the late 16th century, evolving to describe minor, persistent annoyances or details that continuously trouble someone.

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