fastidious
fuss-TID-ee-us
/fæsˈtɪd.i.əs/
Very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail; hard to please.
Implies high standards of cleanliness, order, or correctness, sometimes bordering on finicky.
The story behind the word. Derived from Latin 'fastidium' (disgust or squeamishness). Originally, a fastidious person was someone easily disgusted by imperfect things. Today, it describes high, delicate, and demanding standards in cleanliness, taste, or workmanship.
Word relationships
- fussy: Fussy is informal and negative, whereas fastidious implies high or delicate standards.
- meticulous: Meticulous highlights precise workmanship, while fastidious highlights critical selectivity.
- easygoing: Easygoing means relaxed and not easily upset by minor defects.
- careless: Careless means paying little attention to detail.
Commonly confused with
- factious: Factious means causing dissent or conflict within a group, having nothing to do with cleanliness or detail.
Word family
- fastidiousness (noun): Extreme care regarding accuracy or cleanliness.
- fastidiously (adverb): With fastidious attention to detail.
Collocations
- fastidious taste
- fastidious standards
- fastidious cleanliness
- fastidious worker
Idioms & expressions
- hard to please
- picky to a fault
Example sentences
- "The head chef was fastidious about the temperature of the soufflés before sending them out." Culinary critique
- "He was fastidious in his grooming, never wearing a shirt with even a minor crease." Personal hygiene
Memory hook
FAST-idious people are FAST to spot any dirt or tiny flaw. Hard to please due to high standards.
When not to use
Do not use for general broad efforts where crude or rough solutions are acceptable.
Fun facts
- In microbiology, organisms with complex nutritional requirements are called 'fastidious organisms'.
Related words
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