meticulous
Loading your saved state.
meticulous
Extremely precise, careful, and orderly, often down to the smallest detail. It can also have a slightly negative meaning of excessive fussiness or nitpicking.
Er ist sehr penibel und putzt seine Wohnung jeden Tag gründlich.
He is very meticulous and thoroughly cleans his apartment every day.
'Penibel' (meticulous) can describe not only people (predicatively or attributively), but can also be used as an adverb. It then describes how an action is carried out: extremely carefully.
Sie hat penibel darauf geachtet, dass alles perfekt ist.
She meticulously made sure that everything was perfect.
The word can be meant both positively (very thorough) and negatively (overly fussy). The context and tone of voice determine the exact meaning.
Mein Chef ist bei Berichten sehr penibel, das kann anstrengend sein.
My boss is very meticulous about reports, which can be exhausting.
Common combinations are 'penibel sauber' (meticulously clean), 'penibel genau' (meticulously precise), and 'penibel ordentlich' (meticulously tidy). It often describes a state or quality connected with order and precision.
Seine Werkstatt ist immer penibel sauber.
His workshop is always meticulously clean.
exact / precise
'genau' and 'penibel' both have to do with care and precision. 'genau' is neutral and means that something is done exactly or carefully. 'penibel' is stronger: it describes someone or something that pays very close attention to the smallest details. This can be positive when mistakes need to be avoided. But it can also sound slightly negative if the precision seems excessive. In everyday life, 'genau' is often the safe choice; 'penibel' fits when the attention to detail is especially noticeable.
Vor dem Termin auf dem Amt war sie sehr penibel und sortierte alle Papiere nach Datum.
Before the appointment at the government office, she was very meticulous and sorted all the papers by date.
Beim Termin erklärt das Kind ganz genau, was in der Schule passiert ist.
At the appointment, the child explains exactly what happened at school.