different between punctilious vs external

English

Etymology

From punctilio (“fine point in exactness of conduct”) +? -ous.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /p??k?t?li.?s/

Adjective

punctilious (comparative more punctilious, superlative most punctilious)

1. Strictly attentive to detail; meticulous or fastidious, particularly to codes or conventions.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:meticulous

2. Precise or scrupulous; finicky or nitpicky.

   Synonyms: finicky, nitpicky, precise; see also Thesaurus:meticulous

   • 2009, Ronnie Cann, Ruth Kempson and Eleni Gregoromichelaki, Semantics: an introduction to meaning in language

Derived terms

• punctiliously
• punctiliousness

Related terms

• point
• punctuate
• punctual
• punctuality
• punctuation

Translations

Further reading

• punctilious in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

English

Etymology

From Middle French externe + -al, from Latin externus, from exter, exterus (“on the outside, outward”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /?ks?t?n?l/, /?ks?t?n?l/, /?ks?t?n?l/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?ks?t??n?l/, /?ks?t??n?l/, /?ks?t??n?l/
• Rhymes: -??(?)n?l
• Hyphenation: ex?ter?nal

Adjective

external (comparative more external, superlative most external)

1. Outside of something; on the exterior.
2. Not intrinsic nor essential; accidental; accompanying; superficial.
   • 1850, Richard Chenevix Trench, Notes on the Miracles of Our Lord

     The external circumstances are greatly different.

3. Foreign; relating to or connected with foreign nations.

4. (anatomy) Away from the mesial plane of the body; lateral.
5. Provided by something or someone outside of the entity (object, group, company etc.) considered.

Synonyms

• (not intrinsic nor essential): See also Thesaurus:extrinsic

Antonyms

• internal

Related terms

Translations

Noun

external (plural externals)

1. (chiefly in the plural) The exterior; outward features or appearances.
2. (programming) In the C programming language, a variable that is defined in the source code but whose value comes from some external source.

Further reading

• external in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• external in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• external at OneLook Dictionary Search