fussy

fuss +‎ -y

• enPR: fŭ.s'i, IPA^(key): /ˈfʌ.si/

• Audio (Southern England)

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

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.

• See also Thesaurus:fastidious

• fussy cut

• fuss

• pedantic
• picky