Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective faultfinding contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of faultfinding are captious, carping, censorious, critical, and hypercritical. While all these words mean "inclined to look for and point out faults and defects," faultfinding implies a querulous or exacting temperament.

a faultfinding reviewer

When is it sensible to use captious instead of faultfinding?

The synonyms captious and faultfinding are sometimes interchangeable, but captious suggests a readiness to detect trivial faults or raise objections on trivial grounds.

a captious critic

When would carping be a good substitute for faultfinding?

The words carping and faultfinding are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, carping implies an ill-natured or perverse picking of flaws.

a carping editorial

In what contexts can censorious take the place of faultfinding?

Although the words censorious and faultfinding have much in common, censorious implies a disposition to be severely critical and condemnatory.

the censorious tone of the review

When could critical be used to replace faultfinding?

While in some cases nearly identical to faultfinding, critical may also imply an effort to see a thing clearly and truly in order to judge it fairly.

a critical essay

When is hypercritical a more appropriate choice than faultfinding?

The words hypercritical and faultfinding can be used in similar contexts, but hypercritical suggests a tendency to judge by unreasonably strict standards.

hypercritical disparagement of other people's work

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for faultfinding
Adjective
  • Asian Americans in particular have emerged as a critical part of the electorate, now making up about a quarter of the district’s population as its largest minority group.
    Kimmy Yam, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024
  • Trump would go on to win the critical swing states of Michigan and Pennsylvania in his landslide victory.
    Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 12 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • So much of the new sobriety flex is anathema to the captious alcoholics of 12-step groups.
    Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 19 Apr. 2022
  • That a right-wing party traditionally captious about American patriotism did not react heatedly to evidence of Russian interference in US elections is bizarre.
    Darryl Pinckney, The New York Review of Books, 5 Nov. 2020
Adjective
  • Gordon was a sharp, snarky, perceptive, occasionally judgmental but morally sound voice on the music, the business and the people — and judgment was certainly necessary.
    Jem Aswad, Variety, 3 Oct. 2024
  • Jack starts off sarcastic, judgmental, angry, and Wendy starts off nervous, frightened, hesitant.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 11 July 2024
Adjective
  • Especially as a woman online, a lot of people are so hypercritical of that sort of thing.
    Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2024
  • Savvy and sophisticated, Vivian Kensington embodies Virgo's conservative and meticulous approach, which on the dark side, includes her hypercritical nature and tactical strategy to humiliate Elle Woods.
    Valerie Mesa, Peoplemag, 12 July 2024
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.

Thesaurus Entries Near faultfinding

Cite this Entry

“Faultfinding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/faultfinding. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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