captious
apt to notice and make much of trivial faults or defects; faultfinding; difficult to please.
proceeding from a faultfinding or caviling disposition: He could never praise without adding a captious remark.
apt or designed to ensnare or perplex, especially in argument: captious questions.
Origin of captious
1Other words for captious
1 | carping, nitpicking, niggling, picky, testy |
Other words from captious
- cap·tious·ly, adverb
- cap·tious·ness, noun
- non·cap·tious, adjective
- non·cap·tious·ly, adverb
- non·cap·tious·ness, noun
- o·ver·cap·tious, adjective
- o·ver·cap·tious·ly, adverb
- o·ver·cap·tious·ness, noun
- un·cap·tious, adjective
- un·cap·tious·ly, adverb
- un·cap·tious·ness, noun
Words Nearby captious
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use captious in a sentence
The human sweetness in him was half dried up, and a misanthropy, so new and alien to him, made him querulous and captious.
The Life of Mazzini | Bolton KingBut the real Hynde Horn in the dear old ballad had a truelove who was not captious and capricious and cold like Francesca.
Penelope's Experiences in Scotland | Kate Douglas Wiggin"There, you hear that," said Lawless, who had just drunk enough to render him captious and obstinate.
Frank Fairlegh | Frank E. SmedleyThe Pharisees, always captious and controversial, sought to entangle the Savior in a discussion on the subject of divorce.
A captious eye might have marked it as somewhat lacking—somewhat too round and ready, like the ripple on a pan of water.
Where the Pavement Ends | John Russell
British Dictionary definitions for captious
/ (ˈkæpʃəs) /
apt to make trivial criticisms; fault-finding; carping
Origin of captious
1Derived forms of captious
- captiously, adverb
- captiousness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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