as in stubborn
extremely or overly neat, careful, or precise
My anal-retentive brother keeps records of everything that happens in his life.
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Recent Examples of anal-retentive
But there would be no grease-drinking, Judas-playing Sandy without his anal-retentive best friend, Reuben Feffer.
—
Sean Malin, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2024
Conventional management practices suppress everything that isn’t vine by mowing, tilling, and spraying herbicide with an intensity that ranges from anal-retentive to paranoid.
—Kevin West, Travel + Leisure, 24 July 2024
One might be forgiven for also thinking that the identification is not so much between the audience and the killer as between Fincher, who is known as something of a filmmaking fusspot, and his anal-retentive central character.
—Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 25 Oct. 2023
Sean Malin, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2024
Conventional management practices suppress everything that isn’t vine by mowing, tilling, and spraying herbicide with an intensity that ranges from anal-retentive to paranoid.
—Kevin West, Travel + Leisure, 24 July 2024
One might be forgiven for also thinking that the identification is not so much between the audience and the killer as between Fincher, who is known as something of a filmmaking fusspot, and his anal-retentive central character.
—Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 25 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anal-retentive
Adjective
-
David Paul Morris / Bloomberg via Getty Images Are Americans finally starting to feel the strain of soaring gas prices and stubborn inflation?—
Elizabeth Robinson,
NBC news,
19 May 2026
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Treasury yields have gone up in recent months as stubborn inflation reduces the likelihood of Fed rate cuts, Pisula notes, while geopolitical tensions add more long-term risk to rates.—
Tim Maxwell,
CBS News,
19 May 2026
Adjective
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Obsession, Curry Barker’s indie horror thriller about dangerous obsessive behavior, is winning over Rotten Tomatoes critics.—
Tim Lammers,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2026
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If grass eating is new, sudden, obsessive or comes packaged with any of the symptoms listed above, a vet visit is in order, according to Guilfoyle.—
Diana Bocco,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
Adjective
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Colloff’s reporting is, as usual, dogged and exhaustive, and the book reads like a thriller, but never sacrifices the humanity of the people Skalnik hurt.—
Michael Schaub,
Los Angeles Times,
12 May 2026
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He can be seen as a dogged competitor who used his edge to push his way to the big leagues.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
8 May 2026
Adjective
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If strict fidelity gets in the way, it can be treated as immaterial.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 May 2026
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Employees who once rejected office culture are now returning to in-person roles, accepting stricter employer demands, delaying entrepreneurial goals, or remaining in emotionally exhausting workplaces because financial risks feel too high.—
Maia Niguel Hoskin,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
Adjective
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Board president Kevin Smith said the poll workers took the correct actions with the adamant voter and Thursday’s board vote corrected his attempt to vote a second time.—
Alexandra Kukulka,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
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And Meg [Marinis] was very adamant.—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Anal-retentive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anal-retentive. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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