stickler

American

[stik-ler] / ˈstɪk lər /

noun

a person who insists on something unyieldingly (usually followed byfor ).

a stickler for ceremony.

Synonyms:

perfectionist, purist, fanatic
any puzzling or difficult problem.

Synonyms:

mystery, riddle, puzzle

stickler British

/ ˈstɪklə /

noun

(usually foll by for) a person who makes insistent demands

a stickler for accuracy
a problem or puzzle

the investigation proved to be a stickler

"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 stickler

First recorded in 1530–40; stickle + -er ¹

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.

When Claudius v1 came online, there were only a handful of co-workers in the Slack channel, and the bot, powered by large language model Claude 3.7 Sonnet, was a stickler for the rules:

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

You seem to be a stickler for detail, so that came as a surprise.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 27, 2025

While Ramsey may be a stickler for oceanic preservation, it seems she’s done little to protect against her humility and self-awareness, floating out into the abyss.

From Salon • Jul. 2, 2025

We know Maresca is a stickler for playing out from the back, but doing that against Newcastle is asking for trouble.

From BBC • May 8, 2025

Claudia, a stickler for cleanliness, had insisted that she and her brother take a bath in the museum’s fountain late at night.

From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai

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