fussy

English

Etymology

fuss +‎ -y

Pronunciation

• enPR: fŭ.s'i, IPA^(key): /ˈfʌ.si/

• Audio (UK):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌsi

Adjective

fussy (comparative fussier, superlative fussiest)

1. Anxious or particular about petty details; hard to please.
   • 1915, G[eorge] A. Birmingham [pseudonym; James Owen Hannay], chapter I, in Gossamer, New York, N.Y.: George H. Doran Company, →OCLC:

     It is never possible to settle down to the ordinary routine of life at sea until the screw begins to revolve. There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy.

2. Having a tendency to fuss, cry, or be bad-tempered/ill-tempered (especially of babies).
3. Having much unnecessary detail or decoration.
   • 1979 August, Graham Burtenshaw and Michael S. Welch, “O.V.S. Bulleid's SR loco-hauled coaches - 1”, in Railway World, page 398:

     The internal decor of the SR-built Bulleid corridor stock was noticeably cleaner and less fussy than that of prewar coaches.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:fastidious

Related terms

• fuss

Translations

particular about details

• Bulgarian: дребнав (bg) (drebnav), придирчив (bg) (pridirčiv)
• Catalan: perepunyetes (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 挑剔 (zh) (tiāoti)

• Cornish: denti
• Danish: pertentlig (da), nøjeregnende
• Dutch: pietluttig (nl), kieskeurig (nl)
• Esperanto: postulema
• Finnish: pikkutarkka (fi)
• French: pointilleux (fr) m, tatillon (fr) m
• German: pingelig (de), unruhig (de), kleinlich (de), übereifrig, wählerisch (de), etepetete (de), penibel (de), heikel (de), zimperlich (de), eigen (de), aufgeregt (de), geschäftig (de), betulich (de), mäklig (de)
• Greek: σχολαστικός (el) m (scholastikós), λεπτολόγος (el) m (leptológos), ιδιότροπος (el) m (idiótropos), (regarding clothes etc.) εξεζητημένος (el) m (exezitiménos)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hebrew: טרחני m (tarkhaní)
• Hungarian: aggodalmaskodó (hu), nyűgös (hu)
• Italian: puntiglioso (it), schizzinoso (it), maniacale (it)
• Japanese: 喧しい (ja) (yakamashii), 小うるさい (こうるさい, kourusai)
• Maori: wahakawa (refers only to being choosy with food), mōkinokino (refers to food), warahoe, utiuti
• Norman: finnot
• Plautdietsch: neiw
• Polish: wybredny (pl) m
• Portuguese: enjoado m, exigente (pt), frescurento (pt) m, fresco (pt)
• Russian: привере́дливый (ru) (priverédlivyj), приди́рчивый (ru) (pridírčivyj)
• Spanish: puntilloso (es), quisquilloso (es), tiquismiquis (es), resabiado (es), remilgado (es)
• Swedish: petig (sv)
• Turkish: detaycı

having a tendency to fuss or cry

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 大惊小怪的 (da jing xiao guai de)

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: quengelig, unruhig (de), wählerisch (de), zimperlich (de), heikel (de)
• Hebrew: עצבני m (atsbaní)
• Spanish: llorón (es)
• Turkish: mızmız (tr)

See also

• pedantic
• picky