"hair-splitting" meaning in English

See hair-splitting in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Audio: en-au-hair-splitting.ogg Forms: hair-splittings [plural]
Etymology: * From the gerund form of split hairs Head templates: {{en-noun|~}} hair-splitting (countable and uncountable, plural hair-splittings)
  1. (idiomatic) the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are probably neither important nor noticeable to most people. Tags: countable, idiomatic, uncountable Synonyms: hair-splittery, quibbling, pilpul Translations (the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent): hiusten halkominen [idiomatic] (Finnish), enculage de mouches [masculine, slang] (French), couper les cheveux en quatre (French), pinaillage [masculine] (French), diptérosodomie [feminine] (French), Haarspalterei [feminine] (German), szőrszálhasogatás (Hungarian), hártogun [feminine] (Icelandic), hårkløveri [neuter] (Norwegian Bokmål), дото́шность (dotóšnostʹ) (Russian), зану́дство (zanúdstvo) (Russian), въе́дливость (vʺjédlivostʹ) (Russian), hårklyveri (Swedish)

Inflected forms

{
  "etymology_text": "* From the gerund form of split hairs",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "hair-splittings",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "hair-splitting (countable and uncountable, plural hair-splittings)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
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          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
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        },
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        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
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        },
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          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with French translations",
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
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          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Hungarian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Icelandic translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Norwegian Bokmål translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "2006, Ian Aitken, in The Guardian, Richard Clements Obituary\nDick's Tribune poked endless fun at the hair-splitting sectarianism of the various Trotskyist groups jostling on the fringes of the Labour party at that time."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are probably neither important nor noticeable to most people."
      ],
      "id": "en-hair-splitting-en-noun-oHHMwAo5",
      "links": [
        [
          "differences",
          "differences"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are probably neither important nor noticeable to most people."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "hair-splittery"
        },
        {
          "word": "quibbling"
        },
        {
          "word": "pilpul"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "idiomatic",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "idiomatic"
          ],
          "word": "hiusten halkominen"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "masculine",
            "slang"
          ],
          "word": "enculage de mouches"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "couper les cheveux en quatre"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "pinaillage"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "diptérosodomie"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "Haarspalterei"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "szőrszálhasogatás"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "hártogun"
        },
        {
          "code": "nb",
          "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "hårkløveri"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "dotóšnostʹ",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "дото́шность"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "zanúdstvo",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "зану́дство"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "vʺjédlivostʹ",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "въе́дливость"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
          "word": "hårklyveri"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-hair-splitting.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/44/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "hair-splitting"
}
{
  "etymology_text": "* From the gerund form of split hairs",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "hair-splittings",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "~"
      },
      "expansion": "hair-splitting (countable and uncountable, plural hair-splittings)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English countable nouns",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English lemmas",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English nouns",
        "English uncountable nouns",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Terms with Finnish translations",
        "Terms with French translations",
        "Terms with German translations",
        "Terms with Hungarian translations",
        "Terms with Icelandic translations",
        "Terms with Norwegian Bokmål translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Swedish translations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "2006, Ian Aitken, in The Guardian, Richard Clements Obituary\nDick's Tribune poked endless fun at the hair-splitting sectarianism of the various Trotskyist groups jostling on the fringes of the Labour party at that time."
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are probably neither important nor noticeable to most people."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "differences",
          "differences"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are probably neither important nor noticeable to most people."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "idiomatic",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-hair-splitting.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/44/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/En-au-hair-splitting.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "hair-splittery"
    },
    {
      "word": "quibbling"
    },
    {
      "word": "pilpul"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "word": "hiusten halkominen"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "masculine",
        "slang"
      ],
      "word": "enculage de mouches"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "couper les cheveux en quatre"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "pinaillage"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "diptérosodomie"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "Haarspalterei"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "szőrszálhasogatás"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "hártogun"
    },
    {
      "code": "nb",
      "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "hårkløveri"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "dotóšnostʹ",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "дото́шность"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "zanúdstvo",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "зану́дство"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "vʺjédlivostʹ",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "въе́дливость"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "the act of finding exceedingly small differences which are neither important nor prominent",
      "word": "hårklyveri"
    }
  ],
  "word": "hair-splitting"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.