Word
meticulous
Phoneticsmetic·u·lous
US/məˈtɪkjəɫəs/
UK/mɛtˈɪkjʊləs/
Definitions
01careful with details
C1 · Advanced Formal
adj. showing great care and attention to every small part of a task.
adj. characterized by very precise, conscientious attention to details; often implies a high standard of accuracy or neatness.
“The researcher kept meticulous records of every experiment she performed in the lab.”
“The restoration of the cathedral required meticulous craftsmanship to ensure that every new stone matched the original medieval masonry.”
Usage
Usually placed before the noun or after a linking verb like 'be' or 'become'.
Teaching tip
While 'careful' is A2, 'meticulous' is a C1 alternative that suggests a much higher, almost obsessive level of detail. It is almost always used as a compliment in professional contexts.
Synonyms
02fearful or timid
C2 · Proficiency Archaic
adj. an old-fashioned way to describe someone who is very shy or afraid.
adj. showing or suffering from fear; timid. This sense reflects the word's etymological roots but is no longer used in modern English.
“In the old story, the meticulous traveler was too afraid to cross the dark forest alone.”
“The author used the word in its original sense to describe a meticulous character whose every action was governed by a paralyzing fear of the unknown.”
Teaching tip
Learners will likely only encounter this sense in pre-19th-century literature. In all modern contexts, the word only refers to being careful with details.
Real-World Examples
“The dark secret beneath a woman’s meticulous breakfast preparations is hinted at through imagery: a flower, “open like a yelling mouth”.” “Israel’s former prime minister Ehud Olmert said the siege was a “concerted and meticulous attempt at ethnic cleansing”, which left him disgusted and ashamed.” Etymology
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.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word family
ADJECTIVE
ADVERB
Related words
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- C1 · Advanced
- Updated
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