meticulous

[muh-tik-yuh-luhs]

See more synonyms for meticulous on Thesaurus.com

adjective

taking or showing extreme care about minute details; precise; thorough: a meticulous craftsman; meticulous personal appearance.
finicky; fussy: meticulous adherence to technicalities.

Origin of meticulous

1525–35; < Latin metīculōsus full of fear, fearful, equivalent to metī- for metū- (stem of metus fear) + -culōsus, extracted from perīculōsus perilous

Related formsme·tic·u·lous·ly, adverbme·tic·u·lous·ness, me·tic·u·los·i·ty

[muh-tik-yuh-los-i-tee] /məˌtɪk yəˈlɒs ɪ ti/, nounun·me·tic·u·lous, adjectiveun·me·tic·u·lous·ly, adverbun·me·tic·u·lous·ness, noun

Synonyms for meticulous

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1. exact, strict, scrupulous.

Synonym study

1. See painstaking.

Antonyms for meticulous

1, 2. careless.

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

Related Words for meticulous

precise, cautious, scrupulous, accurate, fastidious, thorough, strict, painstaking, conscientious, exact, fussy, heedful, microscopic, nitpicking, particular, persnickety, picky, punctilious, punctual, conscionable

Examples from the Web for meticulous

Contemporary Examples of meticulous

Rick suggests a Woodbury-esque sneak attack on the hospital and lays out a meticulous strategy relying heavily on timing and luck.
The Walking Dead’s ‘Crossed’: The Stage Is Now Set for a Bloody, Deadly Midseason Finale
Melissa Leon
November 24, 2014
In a line of business built on meticulous order, the inner workings of Spinal Solutions were a study in disorder.
Patients Screwed in Spine Surgery ‘Scam’
The Center for Investigative Reporting
November 3, 2014
Without overshadowing his talented counterparts, Cedar commands the stage with a meticulous mix of stoicism and candor.
The Gospel According to Thomas Jefferson (And Tolstoy and Dickens)
Samuel Fragoso
October 26, 2014
It took a special, meticulous kind of person to accomplish the undertaking, someone with brains, patience, and nerves of steel.
The High Society Bank Robber of the 1800s
J. North Conway
October 19, 2014
He admitted responsibility without hesitation, and in meticulous, grisly detail.
The Myth of the Central Park Five
Edward Conlon
October 19, 2014

Historical Examples of meticulous

At least in his early works, he was meticulous in his research.
Quotes and Images From "Celebrated Crimes"
Alexander Dumas, Pere
He was a thin and meticulous man, and he operated his ship with mechanical perfection.
Death Wish
Robert Sheckley
It is impossible to give you an idea of such a meticulous neatness.
Falk
Joseph Conrad
Casey nervously undid a shoelace, retieing it with meticulous care.
Terry
Charles Goff Thomson
They spare him the trouble of meticulous investigation of unimportant facts.
Days Off
Henry Van Dyke

British Dictionary definitions for meticulous

meticulous

adjective

very precise about details, even trivial ones; painstaking

Derived Formsmeticulously, adverbmeticulousness, noun

Word Origin for meticulous

C16 (meaning: timid): from Latin meticulōsus fearful, from metus fear

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 meticulous

adj.

1530s, "fearful, timid," from Latin meticulosus "fearful, timid," literally "full of fear," from metus "fear, dread, apprehension, anxiety," of unknown origin. Sense of "fussy about details" is first recorded in English 1827, from French méticuleux "timorously fussy." Related: Meticulosity.