What does punctilious mean?
Word: Punctilious
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Punctilious means very careful about correct behaviour and about getting every small point right.
Synonyms: meticulous, scrupulous
How do you spell punctilious?
Syllables: punc - til - i - ous
Tricky part: Spoken quickly, the c before the t almost vanishes, so many students write puntilious. That c is there in the spelling even when you hardly hear it.
Watch out for: puntilious, punktilious
Memory tip: A punctilious person is usually punctual too, and the two words open with the same five letters.
Punctilious in a sentence
Example 1: Mrs Menon is punctilious about thanking every guest by name.
Example 2: Our punctilious scorer sharpened three pencils before the first ball was bowled.
Example 3: Rahul keeps punctilious notes of every bird he sees on his morning walks.
Fun Fact
The word came into English in the 1600s through French from an Italian word built on punto, 'a point', so a punctilious person minds the small points.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
punctillious
a) c
b) t
c) o
d) l
Show answer
d) l. Take out the letter that is not needed and the eleven-letter adjective is left.
Mingle-Mangle
The sentence hides a jumbled word. Choose the word:
Grandfather is so nsiutlupcoi about table manners that nobody dares to reach across the dish.
a) punctuation
b) punctually
c) punctilious
d) propitious
Show answer
c) punctilious. Only this adjective uses all the letters and also describes a man fussy about manners.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word punctilious as used in the sentence:
The punctilious clerk checked each ticket number twice before he stamped the form.
a) strict
b) careless
c) formal
d) exact
Show answer
b) careless. A clerk who checks twice is the reverse of careless; the other three words all lean the same way as punctilious.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. labyrinth 2. punctileous 3. threshold 4. archipelago
a) a large group of islands
b) the strip of floor at the entrance to a room
c) a confusing network of paths or passages
d) giving close attention to rules and fine points of conduct
Show answer
d) giving close attention to rules and fine points of conduct. The adjective's ending has been altered in the list; labyrinth, threshold and archipelago stand as they should.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which guest is behaving in the most punctilious way?
a) one who leaves early to catch the last bus
b) one who laughs loudly at all the jokes
c) one who brings a friend along uninvited
d) one who writes a thank-you note for each gift
Show answer
d) one who writes a thank-you note for each gift
2. A punctilious editor is the person most likely to ____.
a) print the story without reading it
b) hand in the work a month late
c) let spelling errors slip through
d) query a single misplaced comma
Show answer
d) query a single misplaced comma
