scarcely significant

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "scarcely significant" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe something that has very little importance or impact. Example: "The changes made to the policy were scarcely significant and did not address the main issues at hand."

✓ Grammatically correct

Encyclopedia

Science

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

The trend in American fiction, as in the drama, continued in the 20th century toward the pathos of the victim the somehow inadequate, the sometimes insignificant figure destroyed by such vastly unequal forces that the struggle is scarcely significant.

Encyclopedia Britannica

The surge may be attributable primarily to the increasing availability of whole genomes and proteomes, that makes standard comparison and distance measures, such as those based on edit distances and gene rearrangement, either computationally unbearable, or scarcely significant, or both.

Algorithms for Molecular Biology

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

56 human-written examples

This conference season has scarcely featured a significant new policy.

BBC

Such protection strategies have been scarcely studied and will need significant research.

Surface and Coatings Technology

Case-control studies of mass screening for lung cancer (LC) by chest x-rays (CXR) performed in the 1990s in scarcely defined Japanese target populations indicated significant mortality reductions, but these results are yet to be confirmed in western countries.

BMC Cancer

Tau expression has been scarcely examined in MTLE and schizophrenia, and no significant differences were found between patients and controls [ 24, 61].

BioMed Research International

Mother-to-child transmission of HEV has been scarcely documented; however, the available data suggest a significant rate of HEV vertical transmission among the HEV RNA-positive mothers with worsening liver disease.

Emerging Health Threats Journal

This issue becomes exacerbated when attempting to transfer SNPs across species, a scarcely explored topic in plants, and likely to become significant for population genomics and inter specific breeding applications in less domesticated and less funded plant genera.

BMC Plant Biology

Since the fracture problems of FGMs with a crack crossing the interface have been scarcely studied in the past, the present work will be significant for the fracture mechanics analysis and design of functionally graded layered structures.

Mechanics of Materials

With the use of labetalol, findings on cardiovascular effects were inconsistent during the first minutes after stimulation but were significant after 5 min and thereafter; seizure duration was scarcely studied.

British Journal of Anaesthesia

However, to date, exon capture HTS has been scarcely reported in other genetic models [ 42, 43] despite the significant need to facilitate cloning of mutants identified in forward genetic screens.

BMC Genomics

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "scarcely significant", ensure the context clearly conveys the minimal impact or importance of the subject. This phrase is most effective when contrasting it with expectations of greater significance.

Common error

Avoid using "scarcely significant" when the subject is entirely irrelevant or unimportant. The term implies some level of significance, however small; use stronger terms like "irrelevant" or "inconsequential" if there's no significance at all.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "scarcely significant" functions as a descriptor, modifying a noun or concept to indicate its low level of importance or impact. As Ludwig suggests, it denotes something that has very little importance or impact.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

Science

33%

News & Media

33%

Encyclopedias

33%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Social Media

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "scarcely significant" correctly combines an adverb and adjective to describe something of minimal importance. Ludwig confirms its usability in written English, although its rare occurrence suggests careful application. It's deemed grammatically correct and suitable for neutral to formal contexts. The phrase serves to diminish the perceived importance of a subject, as demonstrated in examples from both scientific and general sources.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

hardly significant

Emphasizes the lack of significance more directly.

barely significant

Indicates that the significance is only just present, if at all.

minimally significant

Highlights the small degree of significance.

negligibly significant

Suggests the significance is so small it can be ignored.

insignificantly small

Reverses the order to emphasize the lack of size or importance.

of little consequence

Uses a different phrasing to convey the lack of importance.

of minor importance

Focuses on the reduced level of importance.

scarcely relevant

Shifts the focus from significance to relevance, implying a lack of impact.

almost insignificant

Highlights that significance is nearing zero.

virtually meaningless

Indicates that the significance is practically non-existent.

FAQs

How can I use "scarcely significant" in a sentence?

You can use "scarcely significant" to describe something with very little importance or impact. For instance: "The difference in test scores between the two groups was "scarcely significant"".

What are some alternatives to saying "scarcely significant"?

Alternatives include "hardly significant", "barely significant", or "minimally significant". The best choice depends on the specific nuance you wish to convey.

Is it better to use "scarcely significant" or "not significant"?

"Scarcely significant" implies a very small degree of significance, whereas "not significant" suggests no significance at all. Choose the phrase that accurately reflects the extent of the impact or importance.

What does "scarcely" mean in the context of "scarcely significant"?

In this context, "scarcely" means 'barely' or 'hardly'. It emphasizes that the significance is present to such a small extent that it's almost negligible.