as in quibbling
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as in complaining
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
her husband nitpicks about everything: from how she puts the plates away to how she files the bills
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Recent Examples of nitpicking
Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2026
That meant making some hard choices and nitpicking reasons for why one place shouldn't be included.
—Will Richmond, The Providence Journal, 11 Apr. 2026
Notorious for nitpicking every small mistake after big victories, the Texas women’s head basketball coach was downright dismissive of any flaws in his team’s Sweet 16 win over Kentucky.
—Kirk Bohls, Houston Chronicle, 28 Mar. 2026
While her intentions may stem from concern, her nitpicking mirrors this Earth sign’s shadow side.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026
The key is not nitpicking yourself into paralysis… done is better than perfect.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 4 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, nitpicking from Stewart is always welcome.
—Kansas City Star, 6 Dec. 2025
There are some who are not a fan of this upcoming quarterback class at all and have been nitpicking red flags with many of the top prospects at the position like Mendoza, Dante Moore and Ty Simpson.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
But that certainly didn’t stop the critics from nitpicking everything from her rocking sleeveless dresses to not wearing hosiery.
—Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
The key point here is to be fast, be clear and treat challenges as rare events for obvious misses, not some sort of default setting for nitpicking.
—Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2026
That meant making some hard choices and nitpicking reasons for why one place shouldn't be included.
—Will Richmond, The Providence Journal, 11 Apr. 2026
Notorious for nitpicking every small mistake after big victories, the Texas women’s head basketball coach was downright dismissive of any flaws in his team’s Sweet 16 win over Kentucky.
—Kirk Bohls, Houston Chronicle, 28 Mar. 2026
While her intentions may stem from concern, her nitpicking mirrors this Earth sign’s shadow side.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 13 Jan. 2026
The key is not nitpicking yourself into paralysis… done is better than perfect.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 4 Jan. 2026
Meanwhile, nitpicking from Stewart is always welcome.
—Kansas City Star, 6 Dec. 2025
There are some who are not a fan of this upcoming quarterback class at all and have been nitpicking red flags with many of the top prospects at the position like Mendoza, Dante Moore and Ty Simpson.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
But that certainly didn’t stop the critics from nitpicking everything from her rocking sleeveless dresses to not wearing hosiery.
—Essence, 7 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nitpicking
Adjective
-
More support tickets, more quibbling, more negotiating.—
Jodie Cook,
Forbes.com,
25 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The back and forth over redistricting have set off a lot of finger pointing, with Republicans complaining when Democrats commit partisan gerrymandering and Democrats complain when Republicans do it.—
Jim DeFede,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
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This filling treat will not have anyone complaining about where dinner might be.—
Jenna Sims,
Southern Living,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
With Pluto turning retrograde in your 12th House of Reflection, patterns, habits, or emotional cycles may come into focus in subtle but meaningful ways.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
6 May 2026
-
Now, there’s no mention of Eugenie’s extended family, just a subtle but clear message about their connection to the King and no one else.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
6 May 2026
Verb
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Ever the dedicated mother, Stacy runs to her adult daughter’s aid, fussing at her for not using a driver for her errands.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
13 Mar. 2026
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Your son is fussing in his car seat.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
12 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But a male voice could be heard moaning in the background.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
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One minute later, Pedro Neto was yellow-carded for moaning.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The new calculation, made at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) near Geneva, could help solve a niggling mystery about this particle’s mass.—
Clara Moskowitz,
Scientific American,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Henry dismisses Yasmin but can’t shake the niggling feeling that his wife isn’t entirely wrong.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Trump’s carping notwithstanding, economic growth spiked during Powell’s first year to 3 percent, the highest since the mid-2000s, and wages rose at the fastest rate since before the financial crisis.—
Roger Lowenstein,
The Atlantic,
16 Jan. 2026
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Should the pattern hold true throughout the long march to the Super Bowl, nobody’s going to be carping about the official headcount.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nitpicking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nitpicking. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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