peevers

British

/ ˈpiːvərz /

noun

dialect (functioning as singular) hopscotch

"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

Etymology

Origin of peevers

from peever (the stone used in the game), of obscure origin

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But the writers I have in mind are the purists—also known as sticklers, pedants, peevers, snobs, snoots, nit- pickers, traditionalists, language police, usage nannies, grammar Nazis, and the Gotcha!

From Literature

In some ways language bullies are putting on a show for other persnickety peevers.

From Slate

"Grammar peevers" in projects such as the Apostrophe Protection Society see "a connection between secure syntax and moral excellence", Hitchings argues.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023