Captious: meaning, definitions and examples
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captious
[ ˈkæpʃəs ]
critical
Tending to find fault or raise petty objections. Captious individuals often nitpick and criticize without reason.
Synonyms
critical, fault-finding, hypercritical
Examples of usage
- He was known for his captious attitude towards his colleagues.
- She always had a captious remark to make about everyone's work.
- The captious customer complained about every little detail.
legal
Intended to entrap or confuse, especially in argument. Captious questions are designed to catch someone in a mistake or inconsistency.
Synonyms
Examples of usage
- The lawyer posed captious questions to the witness in an attempt to undermine their testimony.
- The captious argument was meant to trip up the defendant.
Translations
Translations of the word "captious" in other languages:
🇵🇹 censório
🇮🇳 नुक्ताचीनी करने वाला
🇩🇪 kritisch
🇮🇩 cerewet
🇺🇦 прискіпливий
🇵🇱 czepialski
🇯🇵 重箱の隅を楊枝でほじくるような
🇫🇷 pointilleux
🇪🇸 quisquilloso
🇹🇷 titiz
🇰🇷 트집 잡는
🇸🇦 انتقادي
🇨🇿 puntičkářský
🇸🇰 puntičkársky
🇨🇳 吹毛求疵
🇸🇮 natančen
🇮🇸 smásmugulegur
🇰🇿 мін тағаушы
🇬🇪 მჭერმეტყველი
🇦🇿 dəqiq
🇲🇽 quisquilloso
Word origin
The word 'captious' originated from the Latin word 'captiosus', which means 'fallacious' or 'quibbling'. It entered the English language in the late 16th century. Over time, 'captious' has come to denote someone who is overly critical or eager to raise objections, often without good reason. The term is commonly used in legal contexts to describe arguments or questions that are designed to trap or confuse.