Adjacent Words

Punctilious definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PUNCTIL'IOUS, a. Very nice or exact in the forms of behavior, ceremony or mutual intercourse; very exact in the observance of rules prescribed by law or custom; sometimes, exact to excess.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: marked by precise accordance with details; "meticulous research"; "punctilious in his attention to rules of etiquette" [syn: meticulous, punctilious]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Date: 1634 marked by or concerned about precise accordance with the details of codes or conventions Synonyms: see careful • punctiliously adverb • punctiliousness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 attentive to formality or etiquette. 2 precise in behaviour. Derivatives: punctiliously adv. punctiliousness n. Etymology: F pointilleux f. pointille f. It. (as PUNCTILIO)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Punctilious Punc*til"ious (-y[u^]s), a. [Cf. It. puntiglioso, Sp. puntilloso.] Attentive to punctilio; very nice or exact in the forms of behavior, etiquette, or mutual intercourse; precise; exact in the smallest particulars. ``A punctilious observance of divine laws.'' --Rogers. ``Very punctilious copies of any letters.'' --The Nation. Punctilious in the simple and intelligible instances of common life. --I. Taylor. -- Punc*til"ious*ly, adv. -- Punc*til"ious*ness, n.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Someone who is punctilious is very careful to behave correctly. (FORMAL) He was punctilious about being ready and waiting in the entrance hall exactly on time... He was a punctilious young man. ADJ • punctiliously Given the circumstances, his behaviour to Laura had been punctiliously correct. ADV

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Nice, exact, particular, careful, precise, strict, scrupulous, over-scrupulous, con-scientious, punctual, ceremonious.

Moby Thesaurus

accurate, active, attentive, careful, censorious, choicy, choosy, close, compliant, conforming, conscientious, conscionable, constant, conventional, correct, critical, delicate, demanding, detailed, devoted, devout, discriminating, discriminative, duteous, dutiful, exact, exacting, exigent, exquisite, faithful, fastidious, fine, finical, finicking, finicky, formal, fussy, heedful, loyal, methodical, meticulous, mindful, minute, narrow, nice, observant, orderly, overconscientious, overscrupulous, painstaking, particular, perfectionistic, picky, practicing, precious, precise, precisian, precisianistic, precisionist, precisionistic, priggish, prudish, punctual, puristic, puritanic, refined, regardful, religious, rigid, rigorous, scrupulous, scrutinizing, selective, sensitive, strict, subtle, tender-conscienced, true