Pedantic

Pedantic

Adjective · /pɪˈdæn.tɪk/

Definition

Excessively concerned with minor details, rules, and formalities; overly focused on technical correctness at the expense of broader understanding or common sense — a pedantic insistence on correct punctuation; stop being so pedantic. Also: of or resembling a pedant — overly academic, dry, or excessively correct in a way that is off-putting.

Origin

From pedant (a person who makes a show of learning; one who is excessively preoccupied with formal rules — from French pédant, from Italian pedante, possibly from an unattested Latin form peditans, from paedare, to teach, related to paedagogue) + -ic (adjective suffix). The word pedant and its derivatives appearing in European languages from the sixteenth century to describe a newly prominent social type: the scholar who displays learning ostentatiously without applying wisdom. Appearing in English from the late sixteenth century.