MEANING
Marked by careful attention and sustained effort, especially when exact detail matters.
Use it for
Use for exacting effort in research, repair, or observation.Show careful work accumulating detail by detail.
Words that belong together
- painstaking work
- painstaking care
- painstaking research
On the page
Her painstaking inventory identified every book missing from the flooded archive.
Nearby words
Opposite meanings
Word forms
- Base
- painstaking
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Usage notes
Painstaking emphasizes effortful care, not simply slowness; the related adverb is painstakingly.
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