Definition of FINICKY

Did You Know?

You may be familiar with an advertising campaign featuring Morris, the "finicky" housecat who would only eat a certain brand of cat food. Morris’s tastes in cuisine are not only very particular, but very fine as well, and that’s appropriate given the origin of "finicky." The word came about as an alteration of "finicking," itself an alteration of another adjective, "finical." It’s believed that finical derives from the adjective "fine." "Finicking" also gives us "finick," a somewhat rare verb meaning "to put on airs" or "to dawdle about."

Examples of finicky in a Sentence

My teacher is finicky about grammar. a complicated and finicky recipe

Recent Examples on the Web The design team at ASH NYC doubled down on Williams’s vintage vision with a mixture of old and new-but-looks-old decor: Formica tables, rattan lampshades, family photos, and that finicky old jukebox. — Alex Beggs, Bon Appétit, "The Little Things: A Design Tour of Karl’s, a New Detroit Diner With a Vintage Vision," 13 Jan. 2020 The formula works miracles on your finicky skin and bestows your complexion with a seriously head-turning glow. — Hana Hong, Marie Claire, "Can You Become Immune to Your Skincare?," 3 Jan. 2020 Who knows, maybe there will be some newfangled primer that actually works for our finicky skin types or an innovative mascara that truly checks off every box of our lash criteria. — Nicola Dall'asen, Allure, "All the Best New Makeup Launching in December," 12 Dec. 2019 Bordeaux also tends to be big and bold in flavor, unlike Burgundy, which is made from the thin-skinned, finicky pinot noir grape. — Jay Mcinerney, Town & Country, "Pick a Side in the Great Red Wine Wars: Bordeaux or Burgundy?," 4 Nov. 2019 Fifteen to 20 seconds passed before anyone even dared breathe, let alone applaud Classical-music audiences are a finicky, fickle set. — Sarah Schutte, National Review, "A British Choral Group, ‘Singing Joyfully’ on the Upper East Side," 26 Oct. 2019 Everyone has different tastes, and board gamers are a finicky lot. — Jess Grey, Wired, "13 Table-Ready Gifts for Board Game Lovers," 11 Dec. 2019 While fiddle leaf figs can be tricky to take care of (though not impossible!), there are other plant options out there that give you that same dramatic effect without being quite as finicky. — Brittney Morgan, House Beautiful, "Dracaena Plants Are the New Fiddle Leaf Figs Trees, But They're so Much Easier to Keep Alive," 22 Oct. 2019 Turn the head of your finicky feline with a yummy, healthy treat. — Christina Vercelletto, CNN Underscored, "25 gifts for pets and the people who love them," 4 Dec. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'finicky.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.