Word of the Day

: April 5, 2024

meticulous

adjective muh-TIK-yuh-lus

What It Means

Something or someone described as meticulous shows extreme or excessive care in the consideration or treatment of details.

// He is meticulous about keeping accurate records.

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meticulous in Context

"In a press release, the company touts its meticulous approach to the sandwich's creation—testing pickles with eight variations of thickness and more than 10 bun recipes with six different bakeries." — Alicia Kelso, Forbes, 7 Jan. 2021

Did You Know?

We're afraid we have some strange etymological news: meticulous comes from the Latin word for "fearful"—metīculōsus—and ultimately from the Latin noun metus, meaning "fear." Although meticulous currently has no "fearful" meanings, it was originally used as a synonym of "frightened" and "timid." This sense had fallen into disuse by 1700, and in the 1800s meticulous acquired a new meaning of "overly and timidly careful" (possibly due to the influence of the French word méticuleux). This meaning in turn led to the current one of "painstakingly careful," with no connotations of fear at all. The newest use was controversial for a time, but it is now by far the most common meaning; even the most meticulous (or persnickety, depending on your view) among us consider it perfectly acceptable.