Words / C2

KAPSH-uh-s/ˈkæpʃəs/

Captious means always finding trivial faults (formal / disapproving): a captious critic, captious objections. Nitpicking is everyday; carping (this batch) is persistent complaining. Captious is not captive. Do not dismiss a safety paragraph as captious.

Meaning

Always finding trivial faults; nitpicking (formal / disapproving).

Examples

• “A captious war on commas delayed the safety paragraph by a week.”
• “A captious war on commas delayed the fire paragraph by a week.”
• “Nitpicking is everyday. Carping nags; captious is legally or logically picky about trifles. A captive audience is trapped. If the “trifle” is a missing date on consent, it is not captious.”

Good to know

Nitpicking; fault-finding (formal). Everyday: nitpicking. Cousin: carping (nagging complaints). Mix-up: captive. Safety-critical points are not captious.

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