pickier; pickiest
: very careful or too careful about choosing or accepting things : fussy, choosy
a picky eater
Because pen collectors are a picky lot, and some antiques dealers who are not in the pen business can overlook the details of condition, there is occasional friction.—
Bill Holland
Bill HollandWith rising ticket prices and new competition from cable TV, cost-conscious families may be pickier about the movies they choose to see.—David Ansen and Martin Kasindorf
David Ansen and Martin Kasindorf
pickiness
noun
Taylor mocks Zavala for the size of his extended Mexican family, their endless chatter and the frequency of their quinceaneras. Zavala ribs Taylor for his white-person pickiness about artisanal coffee and marriage.
—Belinda Luscombe
Belinda Luscombe
Now jobless and forced to live with five housemates in San Jose, Calif., she comes away from every job interview discouraged by employers' pickiness.
—Daniel McGinn
Daniel McGinn
Examples of picky in a Sentence
a picky cat who would only eat one particular kind of food, and only if it was served in his special dish
she's picky, but she always finds the best quality in fresh meat and fish
Recent Examples on the Web
The Detroit Red Wings can’t afford to be picky right now.
—Max Bultman, The Athletic, 25 Mar. 2025
Arguably not, as the optical quality here is similar, and the lenses are similarly picky about head positioning, which is improved in the standard Quest 3.
Follow me on Twitter.
—Andrew Williams, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
Some of the big-kid entrées are trying to do too much and there’s a chance older, pickier kids will find at least one thing on the plate to hate.
—Emily Farris, Bon Appétit, 14 Mar. 2025
The Mario Burger from Toadstool Cafe is a solid option for both picky and non-picky eaters.
—Eve Chen, USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for picky
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Max Bultman, The Athletic, 25 Mar. 2025
Arguably not, as the optical quality here is similar, and the lenses are similarly picky about head positioning, which is improved in the standard Quest 3.
Follow me on Twitter.
—Andrew Williams, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
Some of the big-kid entrées are trying to do too much and there’s a chance older, pickier kids will find at least one thing on the plate to hate.
—Emily Farris, Bon Appétit, 14 Mar. 2025
The Mario Burger from Toadstool Cafe is a solid option for both picky and non-picky eaters.
—Eve Chen, USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for picky
Cite this Entry
“Picky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/picky. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share