Definition (Adjective) Of little value; paltry, petty, trifling; unimportant, trivial; mean; contemptible. In Context "Although Wardall recovered well over $4,000,000 in his campaign for restitution, the sum was a picayune contribution to the company's solvency." Charles Keats, Magnificent Masquerade: The Strange Case of Dr. Coster and Mr. Musica, 1964. This word was suggested by Jeff Bergman in the Office of Human Resources.