picky

adjective

ˈpi-kē 

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

With 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

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

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

Synonyms

• choosy
• choosey
• dainty
• delicate
• demanding
• exacting
• fastidious
• finical
• finicking
• finicky
• fussbudgety
• fussy
• nice
• old-maidish
• particular
• pernickety [chiefly British]
• persnickety

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

Focus on Food Options Teens can be picky eaters, so plan meals that cater to their preferences. —Judy Koutsky, Forbes, 30 Dec. 2024

Here are three cookie recipes that are likely to please even the pickiest eater on your Christmas list. —Christine Rousselle, Fox News, 18 Dec. 2024

Crunch and size are the highlights, and the sauce packs enough punch to satisfy my picky palate. —Justin L. MacK, Axios, 16 Dec. 2024

Some tropicals are more picky about needing good airflow than others, which determines how the enclosure is lidded to keep humidity in while avoiding stagnation. —Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1917, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

picky

adjective

ˈpik-ē 

pickier; pickiest

: fussy sense 2b, finicky