Meaning & use
pedantry
Excessive attention to minor details, rules, or formal correctness, especially in a tiresome way.
See it in a sentence
The debate collapsed into pedantry over the exact wording of a single footnote.
Reviewers accused the report of pedantry, focusing on commas instead of the actual findings.
A note on using this word
Pedantry is the abstract noun for pedantic behavior, usually used to criticize an unnecessary fuss over small details.
Words with a similar meaning
nitpickingfussiness
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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