pains·tak·ing
ˈpān-ˌstā-kiŋ 
: taking pains : expending, showing, or involving diligent care and effort
painstaking research
painstaking tasks
painstaking accuracy
: the action of taking pains : diligent care and effort
… greater painstaking to achieve incidental verisimilitude and accuracy of detail …—
Times Literary Supplement
Times Literary SupplementExamples of painstaking in a Sentence
Adjective
The book describes the election process in painstaking detail.
she was always painstaking about her work
Recent Examples on the Web
ABC News, 26 Feb. 2026
With the contract signed and keys in hand, Adler set about doing the work her firm is known for—highlighting classic structural elements, preserving history through painstaking refurbishment, and formulating the perfect mix of modern, bespoke, and antique elements.
—David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 25 Feb. 2026
The painstaking work to preserve the species might seem odd to outsiders, but the parrot is just one of many spirited and strange avians in a country where birds reign supreme.
—Charlotte Graham-McLay, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
The satisfyingly noisy sense of liftoff that ensues undoubtedly took a painstaking, iterative process of writing, recording, and mixing to achieve.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for painstaking
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Adjective
The hour-long, primetime documentary chronicled his traumatic brain injury (TBI), his painstaking recovery and the plight of thousands of service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with similar injuries.
—ABC News, 26 Feb. 2026
With the contract signed and keys in hand, Adler set about doing the work her firm is known for—highlighting classic structural elements, preserving history through painstaking refurbishment, and formulating the perfect mix of modern, bespoke, and antique elements.
—David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 25 Feb. 2026
The painstaking work to preserve the species might seem odd to outsiders, but the parrot is just one of many spirited and strange avians in a country where birds reign supreme.
—Charlotte Graham-McLay, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
The satisfyingly noisy sense of liftoff that ensues undoubtedly took a painstaking, iterative process of writing, recording, and mixing to achieve.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for painstaking
Cite this Entry
“Painstaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/painstaking. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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