Trivial vs Superficial - What's the difference?
trivial | superficial | Related terms |
Ignorable; of little significance or value.
* 1848, , Bantam Classics (1997), 16:
Commonplace, ordinary.
* De Quincey
Concerned with or involving trivia.
(biology) Relating to or designating the name of a species; specific as opposed to generic.
(mathematics) Of, relating to, or being the simplest possible case.
(mathematics) Self-evident.
Pertaining to the trivium.
(philosophy) Indistinguishable in case of truth or falsity.
(obsolete) Any of the three liberal arts forming the trivium.
Shallow, lacking substance.
At face value.
*
Of or pertaining to the surface.
Being near the surface.
(rare) Two-dimensional; drawn on a flat surface.
(chiefly in plural) A surface detail.
As adjectives the difference between trivial and superficial
is that trivial is ignorable; of little significance or value while superficial is shallow, lacking substance.As nouns the difference between trivial and superficial
is that trivial is any of the three liberal arts forming the trivium while superficial is a surface detail.trivial
English
Adjective
(en adjective)- "All which details, I have no doubt, Jones , who reads this book at his Club, will pronounce to be excessively foolish, trivial , twaddling, and ultra-sentimental."
- As a scholar, meantime, he was trivial , and incapable of labour.
Synonyms
* (of little significance) ignorable, negligible, triflingAntonyms
* nontrivial * important * significant * radical * fundamentalDerived terms
* triviaNoun
(en noun)- (Skelton)
- (Wood)
superficial
English
Adjective
(en adjective)- Secondly, I continue to base my concepts on intensive study of a limited suite of collections, rather than superficial study of every packet that comes to hand.
Synonyms
* (of or pertaining to the surface) surficialAntonyms
* in-depth * thorough * (lacking substance) substantiveNoun
(en noun)- He always concentrates on the superficials and fails to see the real issue.