fastidious

/fæsˈtɪdi.əs/

//fæsˈtɪdi.əs// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"fastidious" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“fastidious” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #44,777. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#44,777
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Excessively particular, demanding, or fussy about details, especially about tidiness and cleanliness.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fastidious · fastidious · English

fastidious · rank #44,777 · 14 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #44,777
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fealty

Nearest frequency peer: fealty (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “fastidious”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “fastidious” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for fastidious
PropertyValue
Headwordfastidious
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/fæsˈtɪdi.əs/
Letters10
Frequency rank#44,777
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fastidious” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). fastidious lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around fastidious (IPA /fæsˈtɪdi.əs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #44,777 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for fastidious, with forms such as "afstidious", "fasitdious", and "fasstidious". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin fastīdiōsus (“passive: that feels disgust, disdainful, scornful, fastidious; active: that causes disgust, disgusting, loathsome”), from fastīdium (“a loathing, aversion, disgust, niceness of taste, daintiness, etc.”), perhaps for *fastut… The correct English form is fastidious, spelled F-A-S-T-I-D-I-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Excessively particular, demanding, or fussy about details, especially about tidiness and cleanliness.
  2. 2
    Overly concerned about tidiness and cleanliness.
  3. 3
    Difficult to please; quick to find fault.
  4. 4
    Having precise requirements for nutrition and environment (chemical and physical); especially, being difficult to culture because of those requirements.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how fastidious appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. He had at first tried to clean up as they ate, his fastidious nature kicking in, but Chris had told him to just stop, he was blocking the TV.
  2. As she cleaned the room daily, she knew it was against his fastidious nature to bring or have food in his room.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin fastīdiōsus (“passive: that feels disgust, disdainful, scornful, fastidious; active: that causes disgust, disgusting, loathsome”), from fastīdium (“a loathing, aversion, disgust, niceness of taste, daintiness, etc.”), perhaps for *fastutidium, from fastus (“disdain, haughtiness, arrogance, disgust”) + taedium (“disgust”). Cf. French fastidieux.

Synonyms

anal-retentivechoosyconscientiousdaintyexactingfastidiousfinicalfinickingfinickityfinickyfinikinfussyhypercriticallily-handedmeticulousnigglynitpickishnit-pickynittyovercriticaloverscrupulousparticularpedanticpernicketypersnicketypicky

Antonyms

carelessnoncriticalnonfastidioussloppyunconscientiousuncriticalunfastidiousunfussyunmeticulous

This word in other languages

cicatero(Español)pointilleux(Français)anspruchsvoll(Deutsch)minucioso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • afstidious
  • fasitdious
  • fasstidious
  • fastdiious
  • fastiddious
  • fastidiosu
  • fastidiouss
  • fastidiuos
  • fastidoius
  • fastiidous
  • fasttidious
  • fatsidious
  • ffastidious
  • fsatidious

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fastidious - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

afstidious2fasitdious2fasstidious1fastdiious2fastiddious1fastidiosu2fastidiouss1fastidiuos2
Edit distance from "fastidious"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "fastidious"?
"fastidious" is spelled F-A-S-T-I-D-I-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /fæsˈtɪdi.əs/.
What does "fastidious" mean?
As an adjective, "fastidious" means: Excessively particular, demanding, or fussy about details, especially about tidiness and cleanliness.
What are common misspellings of "fastidious"?
Common misspellings include "afstidious", "fasitdious", "fasstidious", "fastdiious", "fastiddious". The correct spelling is "fastidious".
How do you pronounce "fastidious"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fastidious" is /fæsˈtɪdi.əs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "fastidious"?
Borrowed from Latin fastīdiōsus (“passive: that feels disgust, disdainful, scornful, fastidious; active: that causes disgust, disgusting, loathsome”), from fastīdium (“a loathing, aversion, disgust, niceness of taste, daintiness, etc.”), perhaps f... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "fastidious", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

fallacious#44,772elongation#44,757Düsseldorf#44,752gastronomy#44,802

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

garnished14 variantsGroningen14 variantsindecency14 variantsinebriated14 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "fastidious". Here's where to go from here.

  • 14 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #44,777 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "F" letter cohort. F–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list