Other forms: pedants
A pedant is somebody who fusses over tiny points of correctness. A tiresome pedant.
It is an insult, and the fussing is only pedantry when the point does not matter. Every pedant believes the point matters, which is the whole difficulty.
1nounpedantSomebody who fusses over tiny points of correctness.
“One pedant in the room held the meeting up for twenty minutes.”
pedant is a person.
Italian pedante meant a schoolmaster before it meant a fusspot.
Italian
pedante — a teacher, schoolmaster, pedant
Middle French
pedant
English, today
pedant
From Middle French pedant, pedante, from Italian pedante (“a teacher, schoolmaster, pedant”), associated with unrelated pedagogo. Compare French pédant.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA