gnat-straining en · NOUN
Etymology
From gnat + straining.
Meanings
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(uncountable) Fuss or importance placed on trivial things, to the exclusion of more significant matters.
Neither is it the case that gnat-straining leads to camel swallowing, nor tithe-paying to neglect of justice, mercy and faith.
1995, Kenneth G. C. Newport, The Sources and Sitz Im Leben of Matthew 23, page 141: