punctilio

American  

[puhngk-til-ee-oh] / pʌŋkˈtɪl iˌoʊ /

noun

punctilios plural

1. a fine point, particular, or detail, as of conduct, ceremony, or procedure.

2. strictness or exactness in the observance of formalities or amenities.

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punctilio British  

/ pʌŋkˈtɪlɪˌəʊ /

noun

1. strict attention to minute points of etiquette

2. a petty formality or fine point of etiquette

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• punctilios
  plural

Etymology

Origin of punctilio

First recorded in 1590–1600; alteration of Italian puntiglio, from Spanish puntillo, diminutive of punto, from Latin pūnctum point

Explanation

Any custom of etiquette can be called a punctilio, especially if it seems a bit silly. Your grandfather's punctilio of announcing his name when he answers the phone might seem silly to you. Men holding doors open for women seems pretty old fashioned to many young people — and a little bit sexist, too. Some older men, however, will stick to this punctilio because they feel it would be rude not to do it. Punctilio comes from the Spanish puntillo, or "little point."

Example Sentences

They combined, then as now, a wild bureaucratic adherence to punctilio and procedure with entanglements of cohort and clan that could shortcut the procedure in a moment.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 8, 2017

There lingers, even in our mercantile age, an admiration for the aristocratic ethos, the punctilio, of the duel.

From Washington Post • Jul. 8, 2015

Protocol, punctilio, politesse suddenly drop, leaving Tennyson’s “Nature, red in tooth and claw.”

From BusinessWeek • Sep. 29, 2011

NBC'S reasoning: in a landslide, there is no place for punctilio.

From Time Magazine Archive

To the last they retained something of the punctilio, which, as he says, inspired him at the outset.

From The Memoirs of Count Carlo Gozzi; Volume the First by Gozzi, Carlo