Word a Day
persnickety
What does persnickety mean?
persnickety (adjective): characterized by excessive precision and attention to trivial details.
Definition: Princeton WordNet 3.1.
How do you use persnickety in a sentence?
- A persnickety job. (Princeton WordNet 3.1)
- A persnickety school teacher. (Princeton WordNet 3.1)
How do you pronounce persnickety?
/pɚˈsnɪkɪti/ (IPA, American English). The app reads every word aloud.
Where does persnickety come from?
From Scots persnickety, whence also pernickety.
Etymology: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Test yourself: do you know “persnickety”?
Tap an answer to check it. The same questions the app asks.
What does “persnickety” mean?
of a disease or trait: passed from a parent to offspring in the genes
Not quite: that's what hereditary means.
curved or bowed outward like the outside of a bowl, circle, or sphere
Not quite: that's what convex means.
characterized by excessive precision and attention to trivial details
Right! That's what “persnickety” means.
allowing little light to pass through, not translucent or transparent
Not quite: that's what opaque means.
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