meticulous - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Learned borrowing from Latin meticulōsus (“full of fear, timid, fearful, terrible, frightful”), from metus (“fear”) and -culōsus, extracted from perīculōsus (“perilous”). Sense of “characterized by very precise, conscientious attention to details” is a semantic loan from French méticuleux.

meticulous (comparative more meticulous, superlative most meticulous)

  1. Characterized by very precise, conscientious attention to details.
    Synonyms: painstaking, fastidious; see also Thesaurus:meticulous
    Antonyms: sloppy, careless, slapdash
    meticulous search
    meticulous investigation
    meticulous knowledge
    meticulous report
    • 2024 December 27, Pip Dunn, “Network News: Hitachi pushes on with '810' assembly and testing”, in RAIL, number 1025, page 20:
      Currently, bodyshells for units 810024/025 are on the weld line. […] In the paint shop are bodyshells for 810022/023, which are undergoing a meticulous process to ensure a high-quality finish.
  2. (archaic) Timid, fearful, overly cautious.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:cautious
    Antonyms: aggressive, carefree; see also Thesaurus:careless

characterized by very precise, conscientious attention to details

characterized by timid, fearful, overly cautious