as in obsessive
extremely or overly neat, careful, or precise
I've always been anal about arranging my books alphabetically by author.
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Recent Examples of anal
That means STIs can also cause throat, genital and anal infections.
—
Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2025
Hemorrhoids are diagnosed after visually inspecting the anal area, while colon cancer is diagnosed and staged by using many different tests.
—Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 9 July 2025
How did Farrah Fawcett die? After living with anal cancer for three years, Fawcett died from the illness on June 25, 2009.
—Alyssa Davis, People.com, 25 June 2025
Allen Ginsberg pops up here, once while reciting best practices for anal hygiene.
—Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for anal
Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2025
Hemorrhoids are diagnosed after visually inspecting the anal area, while colon cancer is diagnosed and staged by using many different tests.
—Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 9 July 2025
How did Farrah Fawcett die? After living with anal cancer for three years, Fawcett died from the illness on June 25, 2009.
—Alyssa Davis, People.com, 25 June 2025
Allen Ginsberg pops up here, once while reciting best practices for anal hygiene.
—Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for anal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anal
Adjective
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Weaver plays Grandma Helen, the matriarch of the family and mother of Gavin and Abbi’s deceased father, who was an obsessive hoarder.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
11 Nov. 2025
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And interestingly, there’s no resentment between the obsessive and the expressive explorers, Brown said.—
Jean E. Palmieri,
Footwear News,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The attorney general was adamant that if Running Fence broke the law, workers would be arrested and jailed, and contractors would lose their licenses.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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Lownie is adamant that their friendship dates back to 1991.—
Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa,
FOXNews.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Senior officials said that Medicare beneficiaries seeking coverage for GLP-1 drugs for obesity would have to meet strict eligibility criteria and that these would follow Make America Healthier Again principles to address chronic disease risk factors.—
Alice Park,
Time,
6 Nov. 2025
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Beyond the major races, Democrats swept state Supreme Court contests in Pennsylvania and won ballot initiatives in Colorado and Maine, where voters approved gun safety measures and rejected stricter voter ID laws.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Anal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anal. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
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