nitpicks

verb

present tense third-person singular of nitpick
as in complains
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant her husband nitpicks about everything: from how she puts the plates away to how she files the bills

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of nitpicks So your first indication of problems can be a client who nitpicks every job, forcing you to return to re-trim the 2-inch patch of sod that the client claims wasn’t properly manicured. — Kathy Kristof, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Jan. 2026 But Brian constantly nitpicks her purchases. — Kamaron McNair, CNBC, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nitpicks
  1. complains
  2. fusses
  3. moans
Verb
  • Shannon basically complains so much that Jenn, a sweet baby angel straight from a Hallmark Christmas movie, offers to change rooms with her.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The private sector complains that there are jobs but that Indians aren’t skilled enough to be hired.
    — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of complains
Verb
  • Five-month-old Ladoo fusses in a hammock made from an old scarf.
    — Diaa Hadid, NPR, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of fusses
Verb
  • Endo is the sixth choice midfielder and someone who never moans about his place in the pecking order.
    — James Pearce, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Musselwhite punctuated the music with his harmonica trills and moans while his right knee bounced in time with the rhythms.
    — Kevin McKeough, Chicago Tribune, 7 June 2026
Definition of moans

Browse Nearby Words

nitpicking
nitpicks
nitpicky
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Cite this Entry

“Nitpicks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nitpicks. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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