Sticklers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Individuals who demand a high standard of accuracy or precision
2. those who are excessively concerned with minor details or rules
3. people who insist on adherence to specific principles, often inflexibly

Etymology: Cornish wrestling has a surprising hand in this word. Its judges once carried sticks, used to signal decisions during matches and serving as a badge of their office. That practice evolved from judges holding swords, and then swordsticks, which is where the "stick" in this word's story comes from. The word itself comes from Middle English "stighteler" or "stytelere," formed from "stickle" with the agent suffix "-er." "Stickle" is the older verb meaning to act as an umpire or arbiter, so a stickler was originally one who judged or settled a dispute, and the modern sense of someone fussy about rules and details grew out of that role of strict adjudicator.

Synonyms: perfectionists, disciplinarians, stickler

Antonyms: slackers