Persnickety

Persnickety describes someone who is excessively concerned with details, especially trivial ones, and is often fussy, fastidious, or difficult to please. It implies a demanding nature and a tendency to find fault, often over minor imperfections. This fastidiousness can manifest in a hypercritical attitude toward others' work, habits, or appearances. A persnickety individual might exhibit meticulousness in their own actions, seeking perfection and order in their surroundings. The term carries a connotation of slight annoyance, indicating that the behavior, while potentially harmless, can be irritating to those around them.

Persnickety meaning with examples

• The chef was incredibly persnickety about the presentation of each dish, meticulously arranging every garnish and demanding flawless execution from his staff. No dropped pea would make it on his plate. He would taste every dish multiple times, demanding corrections that seemed almost nonexistent to the staff.
• The art collector was persnickety in his acquisition process, scrutinizing provenance and condition reports with intense focus, turning down many pieces for even the slightest flaw. The slightest scratch on the back of a painting would cause a rejection.
• Sarah's persnickety attention to detail meant she could find mistakes in the simplest of reports, something that both her boss and colleagues found incredibly frustrating. Any slight error in the document and the report was rejected and had to be redone
• Despite her genuine desire to clean, Maria's persnickety method of cleaning meant it took an age to complete the simplest of chores, which often annoyed her husband. She would obsessively clean, re-cleaning surfaces until they were perfect.