snuff-and-butter

9.9

Ordinary talk that is simple and not deep

noun

Archaic

: trivialidades

Most of the articles in the magazine are snuff-and-butter, lacking any real depth.

Examples

The discussion was just snuff-and-butter, with nothing new or insightful shared.
He dismissed their complaints as mere snuff-and-butter, not worth his attention.
The conversation was just snuff-and-butter.
He always talks about snuff-and-butter topics.
He dismissed their complaints as mere snuff-and-butter, not worth his attention.
Most of the articles in the magazine are snuff-and-butter, lacking any real depth.
The discussion was just snuff-and-butter, with nothing new or insightful shared.

Synonyms

fiddling

vssnuff-and-butter

Informal

7.0

Small in amount and not important

is about ordinary superficial conversation rather than tiny issues

as trivial as a gnat's pee

vssnuff-and-butter

Informal

9.9

Very unimportant and not worth worrying about

is about ordinary superficial conversation rather than total insignificance

Antonyms

significant

∞ 2.5

Important and big enough to make a difference

profound

10 6.2

Very deep and extending far down

How Trivial

banal

21 7.2

trivial

121 3.9

snuff-and-butter

Archaic

9.9

ordinary

683 1.0

Surface Forms

snuff-and-butter singular

snuff-and-butters plural

Morphology

snuff-and-butter = snuff + butter (semi-transparent) = snuff + and + butter

The word is a clear compound pattern (X-and-Y), but the idiomatic meaning 'trivial/ordinary' cannot be directly inferred from the literal meanings of 'snuff' and 'butter'.

Etymology

The word snuff-and-butter likely comes from two everyday items, snuff 'powdered tobacco' and butter 'a common food'. Thinking of these simple household things is a helpful way to remember that the phrase describes small, ordinary or shallow talk, so it is used for things that are trivial or not important.