Pages

▼

Saturday, 18 April 2015

P is for Pettifogging


For this year's A-Z Challenge I have selected a word from the dictionary for each day and written a story around it with a 100 word limit. For extra interest I have chosen words that are unknown or unfamiliar to me. All definitions are from the Oxford Dictionary & Thesaurus 2007 Edition. Today's word is: Pettifogging.

 Pettifogging: Petty or trivial.
“Look, his horse’s tunic isn’t pressed properly. There’s a big crease in that lion.”

“Oh, yes?” Mabel eyed her rival scornfully. “At least I know how to buff a breastplate. Verily your husband’s armour is as dull as ditchwater.”

Deirdre fumed. It didn’t matter that her brave knight Lionel won most jousts against Edward. Mabel focussed on these pettifogging details as a defence, and dragged Deirdre down to her level.

“Aha!” said Deirdre, eyes aglow. “Another knight hath knocked your husband off his horse with his lance.”

“With no style,” said Mabel. “My Edward knows how to fall beautifully.”
at

29 comments:

  1. betty18 April 2015 at 06:43

    I don't know, Pettifogging is a mouthful to say; I can see my tongue being tied trying to introduce it into a conversation :)

    betty

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tasha Duncan-Drake18 April 2015 at 10:07

    LOL - Mabel knows how to stand by her man even when he's doing terribly ;)
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jennifer Hawes18 April 2015 at 12:42

    Some women can be so pettifogging! I'm too busy to be petty:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tamara Narayan18 April 2015 at 13:23

    "My Edward knows how to fall beautifully." That's hilarious. I can see the haughty expression on this character's face. (The impact of this line is the opposite of pettifogging.)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Keith's Ramblings18 April 2015 at 14:22

    Now that's a nice word to say! I just love the last line of your story!I like it all of course, but especially....well, you know!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Alex J. Cavanaugh18 April 2015 at 14:39

    Some people can't accept defeat no matter what.

    ReplyDelete
  7. djinnia18 April 2015 at 14:54

    I'm laughing.. Mabel killed at the end. Great story!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Sophie Duncan18 April 2015 at 15:07

    LOLOLOL! Falling with style! I suppose there are positives in everything ;P
    Sophie
    Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles
    FB3X
    Wittegen Press

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hilary Melton-Butcher18 April 2015 at 15:16

    Hi Nick - love Pettifogging .. and your description is great .. so right - what a pain Mabel must be .. cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
  10. loverofwords18 April 2015 at 15:38

    Great story, again. Before I read the definition, I try and figure out what the word might be, I cannot do it without looking.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Chrys Fey18 April 2015 at 15:45

    Pettifogging is a neat word.

    That last line by Mabel made me laugh.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Annalisa Crawford18 April 2015 at 18:24

    I love how to set the scene at an earlier time - it really suits the word!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Shell Flower18 April 2015 at 18:28

    HAHAHA. You really did capture pettiness with this piece. I love how it's such a different world than ours today, too.

    ReplyDelete
  14. J E Oneil18 April 2015 at 19:08

    He knows how to fall beautifully. Okay, that made me laugh out loud.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Susan Gourley/Kelley18 April 2015 at 20:22

    That was really cute. We all know someone like Mabel, don't we.

    ReplyDelete
  16. diedre Knight18 April 2015 at 21:35

    Delightful! I reckon I'll be rooting for Lionel!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Liz A.19 April 2015 at 01:36

    Watching the jousting match must be dreary. If that's all they have to talk about.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous19 April 2015 at 12:20

    Well, I guess Mabel can find something positive when it comes to her husband's failures.

    ~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
    Member of C. Lee's Muffin Commando Squad
    Story Dam
    Patricia Lynne, Indie Author

    ReplyDelete
  19. A Tarkabarka Hölgy19 April 2015 at 13:29

    Hahaha :D Fall beautifully indeed. Some people just can't be helped...

    @TarkabarkaHolgy from
    Multicolored Diary - Epics from A to Z
    MopDog - 26 Ways to Die in Medieval Hungary

    ReplyDelete
  20. Lily Whalen19 April 2015 at 13:53

    Easy to grasp what pettifogging means with the provided context. Thanks, Nick. A great theme for the A-Z challenge!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Doreen McGettigan19 April 2015 at 15:41

    I love that come back line, he falls beautifully! Awesome.
    I have no time for those pettifogging fools.

    ReplyDelete
  22. kjmckendry19 April 2015 at 21:05

    I'm going to try to use pettifogging sometime this week. I like that word!

    ReplyDelete
  23. cleemckenzie19 April 2015 at 22:48

    Finally a word I know! I was getting an inferiority complex not knowing any of the words you were posting. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Tammy Theriault20 April 2015 at 04:38

    Wow. Lee knows the word?? Geez. I'd never heard of it!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Rebecca M. Douglass20 April 2015 at 05:35

    Love the theme and the word. I've never managed to work it into a conversation (yes, I've heard it before!), but I will try.

    Glad to see you're still hanging in!
    Rebecca at The Ninja Librarian

    ReplyDelete
  26. Holly Jahangiri20 April 2015 at 14:01

    She'll probably be criticizing Edward, later, for the bloodstains on his tunic.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Julie Flanders20 April 2015 at 14:10

    What a fun word! My tongue would probably get twisted trying to say it but I love it anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Sara C. Snider20 April 2015 at 17:58

    Pettifoggoing -- new word for me! :D Cute and fun story. I imagine Edward's hair rippling in the wind (slow motion style) as he falls beautifully. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Michelle Wallace20 April 2015 at 19:27

    Pettifogging... such a quaint word.
    I love the rhythm.

    ReplyDelete