fussy

See also: Fussy

English

Etymology

From fuss +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

• enPR: fŭ.s'i, IPA^(key): /ˈfʌ.si/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌsi
• (Northern England) IPA^(key): /ˈfʊ.si/

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, 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

Derived terms

• fussily
• fussiness
• fussy cut
• nonfussy
• overfussy
• prissy
• unfussy

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
• Czech: malicherný (cs), puntičkářský (cs), hnidopišský (cs), příliš náročný
• Danish: pertentlig (da), nøjeregnende
• Dutch: pietluttig (nl), kieskeurig (nl)
• Esperanto: postulema
• Finnish: pikkutarkka (fi), turhantarkka
• 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)
• Hebrew: טרחני m (tarkhaní)
• Hungarian: aggodalmaskodó (hu), nyűgös (hu)
• Indonesian: rewel (id)
• 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)
• Portuguese: enjoado (pt) m, exigente (pt), frescurento (pt) m, fresco (pt), mimizento (pt) m
• Russian: привере́дливый (ru) (priverédlivyj), приди́рчивый (ru) (pridírčivyj)
• Spanish: puntilloso (es), quisquilloso (es), tiquismiquis (es), remilgado (es), pejiguero (es), esquilimoso, escolimoso (es), melindroso (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)

• Czech: úzkostlivý
• Finnish: touhukas (fi), touhuava
• German: quengelig, unruhig (de), wählerisch (de), zimperlich (de), heikel (de)
• Hebrew: עצבני (he) m (atsbaní)
• Polish: płaczliwy (pl)
• Spanish: llorón (es)
• Turkish: mızmız (tr)

See also

• pedantic
• picky