pernickety
/pəˈnɪk.ɪ.ti/
"pernickety" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pernickety” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as an adjective - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Fussy; paying undue attention to minor details; fastidious.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pernickety |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /pəˈnɪk.ɪ.ti/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “pernickety” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for pernickety is 10 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pəˈnɪk.ɪ.ti/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for pernickety, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Scots pernickety, persnickety, apparently from per- + nick (“a notch, mark, cutting retort”) + -et (“-ed”) + -y; equivalent to English per- + nick + -ety; literally, “marked up”, then “overly precise”. The alternative form persnickety, with s, may be d… The correct English form is pernickety, spelled P-E-R-N-I-C-K-E-T-Y.
Definition
- 1Fussy; paying undue attention to minor details; fastidious.
- 2Requiring attention to minor details.
Etymology
From Scots pernickety, persnickety, apparently from per- + nick (“a notch, mark, cutting retort”) + -et (“-ed”) + -y; equivalent to English per- + nick + -ety; literally, “marked up”, then “overly precise”. The alternative form persnickety, with s, may be due to substitution of Scots sneck (“a cut, notch”) for nick. Compare also Scots variants pernicked, pernicket, pirnicky, and pernicky.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "pernickety"?
What does "pernickety" mean?
How do you pronounce "pernickety"?
What is the origin of the word "pernickety"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “pernickety”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-E-R-N-I-C-K-E-T-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /pəˈnɪk.ɪ.ti/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.