Dictionary

punctilious en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /pʌŋkˈtɪli.əs/

Etymology

Etymology tree English punctilio Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *h₃édosder.? Proto-Italic *-ŏ̄dsos? Old Latin -ōssus Latin -ōsus Old French -usbor. Middle English -ous English -ous English punctilious From punctilio (“fine point in exactness of conduct”) + -ous.

Meanings

1. Strictly attentive to detail; meticulous or fastidious, particularly to codes or conventions.
   • He was punctilious. According to those who worked with him, even his paperwork was the best they'd seen. 2001 May 12, Robert Potts, “The poet at play”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
   • With a punctilious slap of the gloves, the duel was now inevitable.
2. Precise or scrupulous; finicky or nitpicky.
   • Every editor at Merriam-Webster deals with the Black Books at many points during their tenure. The Black Books are the in-house set of rules for writing a dictionary (commonly called a style guide) as conceived and written in punctilious detail by the former editor in chief Philip Babcock Gove, for the creation of Webster’s Third. 2017, Kory Stamper, Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries, Pantheon Books, page 103:
   • Of course, humans do not treat time in such a punctilious fashion. 2009, Ronnie Cann, Ruth Kempson, Eleni Gregoromichelaki, Semantics: an introduction to meaning in language:

Forms

Deriveds

unpunctilious · punctiliously · punctiliousness · overpunctilious

Relateds

point · punctuate · punctuality · punctual · punctuation

Synonyms

thorough · groundly · careful · letter-perfect · minute · rigorous · punctilious · polished · polished · scrutinous · intensive · rigorous · painstaking · scrutinous · minute · sedulous · scrupulous · punctilious · careful · tight · conscientious · painstaking · in-depth · precise · fastidious · fastidious · accurate · strict · precise · letter-perfect · thorough · surgical · root and branch · mindful · groundly · nitpicky · exhaustive · exhaustive · tight · strict · root and branch · conscientious · sedulous · finicky · solicitous · in-depth · precise · particular · scrupulous · particular · comprehensive · intensive · accurate · mindful · surgical · comprehensive · solicitous

Translations (37)

pl formalistyczny (strictly attentive to detail) · pl formalistyczny (precise) · de korrekt (strictly attentive to detail) · fi pilkuntarkka (precise) · tr aşırı titiz (strictly attentive to detail) · de pedantisch (precise) · ru щепети́льный (strictly attentive to detail) · pl skrupulatny (precise) · el σχολαστικός (strictly attentive to detail) · pl skrupulatny (strictly attentive to detail) · hy բծախնդիր (strictly attentive to detail) · nl pietepeuterig (precise) · bg педантичен (precise) · de genau (precise) · hy քթի մազ (strictly attentive to detail) · de pedantisch (strictly attentive to detail) · es puntilloso (strictly attentive to detail) · pl drobiazgowy (precise) · nl precies (precise) · ru педанти́чный (precise) · bg стриктно спазващ (strictly attentive to detail) · fi pilkuntarkka (strictly attentive to detail) · de minutiös (strictly attentive to detail) · de förmlich (strictly attentive to detail) · pl pedantyczny (precise) · pl drobiazgowy (strictly attentive to detail) · gd pongail (precise) · nl punctueel (strictly attentive to detail) · gd pongail (strictly attentive to detail) · pl pedantyczny (strictly attentive to detail) · nl minutieus (strictly attentive to detail) · ru церемо́нный (strictly attentive to detail) · de peinlich genau (strictly attentive to detail) · de überkorrekt (strictly attentive to detail) · de präzise (precise) · es puntilloso (precise) · fr pointilleux (strictly attentive to detail)