technicality

noun

Etymology: Etymology tree English technical Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh₂ts Latin -itāsder. Old French -itebor. Middle English -ite English -ity English technicality From technical + -ity.

1. The quality or state of being technical.

   “At her invitation he outlined for her the succeeding chapters with terse military accuracy ; and what she liked best and best understood was avoidance of that false modesty which condescends, turning technicality into pabulum.”

   “Ha and Hyland suggest that technicality is not binary and it is not always possible to say that a word is technical or not.”

2. That which is technical, or peculiar to any trade, profession, sect, or the like.

   “the technicalities of the sect”

   “[T]he names of places and horses and slangy technicalities of the turf, had interlarded the poor girl's brain-sick babble; […]”

3. A minor detail, rule, law, etc., seemingly insignificant to a non-specialist but which has significant consequences in larger matters.

   “legal technicality”

   “These are some of the "Reversible Errors" on which a new trial can be had and are often spoken of by misinformed business men as "technicalities," as when they say a certain gangster "got off on a technicality" or "got a new trial on a technicality."”