fastidious

[fa-stid-ee-uh s, fuh-]

See more synonyms for fastidious on Thesaurus.com

adjective

excessively particular, critical, or demanding; hard to please: a fastidious eater.
requiring or characterized by excessive care or delicacy; painstaking.

Origin of fastidious

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin fastīdiōsus squeamish, equivalent to fastīdi(um) lack of appetite, disgust, perhaps by syncope of *fastutīdium (fastu-, combining form of fastus pride, conceit + -tīdium combining form of taedium tedium) + -ōsus -ous

Related formsfas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbfas·tid·i·ous·ness, nounhy·per·fas·tid·i·ous, adjectivehy·per·fas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbhy·per·fas·tid·i·ous·ness, nounnon·fas·tid·i·ous, adjectivenon·fas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbnon·fas·tid·i·ous·ness, nouno·ver·fas·tid·i·ous, adjectiveo·ver·fas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbo·ver·fas·tid·i·ous·ness, nounul·tra·fas·tid·i·ous, adjectiveul·tra·fas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbul·tra·fas·tid·i·ous·ness, nounun·fas·tid·i·ous, adjectiveun·fas·tid·i·ous·ly, adverbun·fas·tid·i·ous·ness, noun

Synonym study

1. See particular.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for fastidiousness

meticulousness, carefulness, preciseness, punctiliousness, care, fussiness, painstaking

Examples from the Web for fastidiousness

Historical Examples of fastidiousness

Heyst's dread arose, not out of shame or timidity, but from his fastidiousness.
Victory
Joseph Conrad
The attitude of warding off reveals itself as fastidiousness and as bashfulness.
Erasmus and the Age of Reformation
Johan Huizinga
But all the rich tremble before the fastidiousness of the poor.
Appreciations and Criticisms of the Works of Charles Dickens
G. K. Chesterton
Then I found you, Elfride, and I felt for the first time that my fastidiousness was a blessing.
A Pair of Blue Eyes
Thomas Hardy
Too much attention to dress and appearance is fastidiousness.
Practical Ethics
William DeWitt Hyde

British Dictionary definitions for fastidiousness

fastidious

adjective

very critical; hard to please
excessively particular about details
exceedingly delicate; easily disgusted

Derived Formsfastidiously, adverbfastidiousness, noun

Word Origin for fastidious

C15: from Latin fastīdiōsus scornful, from fastīdium loathing, from fastus pride + taedium weariness

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

Word Origin and History for fastidiousness

fastidious

adj.

mid-15c., "full of pride," from Latin fastidiosus "disdainful, squeamish, exacting," from fastidium "loathing, squeamishness," most likely from *fastu-taidiom, a compound of fastus "contempt, arrogance" and taedium "aversion, disgust." Early use in English was both in passive and active senses. Meaning "squeamish, over-nice" emerged in English 1610s. Related: Fastidiously; fastidiousness.

fastidiousness in Medicine

fastidious

[fă-stĭd′ē-əs, fə-]

adj.

Possessing or displaying careful, meticulous attention to detail.
Difficult to please; exacting.
Having complex nutritional requirements. Used of microorganisms.