吹毛求疵

chuīmáo-qiúcī
idiom #19,156

Meanings

  1. 1 to nitpick
  2. 2 to be fastidious
  3. 3 to find fault with everything

Examples

HSK 2
Bié chuīmáo-qiúcī le, zhè yǐjīng gòu hǎo le.
Stop being so picky - this is already good enough.
HSK 4
Tā zǒngshì chuīmáo-qiúcī, méi rén yuànyì hé tā gòngshì.
He's always nitpicking - nobody wants to work with him.

Tips

memory
Literally: blow apart fur (吹毛) to look for flaws (求疵). Imagine blowing on an animal's coat to expose the tiniest blemish - that's how absurdly thorough a nitpicker is.

Stroke Order

chuī
máo
qiú