Definition

Adjective: 1. Not showing or requiring careful attention to detail, cleanliness, or refinement: Describes a person, behavior, or thing that is not meticulous, neat, or concerned with high standards, especially in matters of appearance, dress, or environment. 2. Not exacting or demanding in requirements: Often used in biological or nutritional contexts to describe organisms that are not selective or fussy about their conditions or food sources.

Usage and Examples

• General Use (Lack of Care/Neatness):
  • His unfastidious approach to housekeeping meant the apartment was often cluttered.
  • She was unfastidious in her dress, preferring comfort over fashion.
• Biological/Nutritional Context (Not Demanding):
  • The unfastidious bacteria grew readily on the basic culture medium.
  • Pigs are often considered unfastidious eaters.

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• The term often carries a neutral to mildly negative connotation when describing personal habits, implying a lack of polish or care.
• In scientific contexts, it is a neutral, descriptive term indicating low selectivity.
• "unfastidious in [something]": A common collocation specifying the area in which care is lacking (e.g., , ).

Variants and Related Words

• Unfastidiously (adverb): In an unfastidious manner.
  • He lived unfastidiously, with little regard for order.
• Fastidious (adjective): The direct antonym, meaning very attentive to detail, cleanliness, or accuracy.
  • A fastidious editor corrected every minor error.

Synonyms

• Sloppy: (Emphasizes carelessness and lack of neatness.)
• Untidy: (Disorderly in appearance.)
• Undemanding: (Not requiring much care, especially in non-personal contexts.)
• Uncritical: (Not making careful judgments, often in taste or standards.)
• Unselective: (Not choosy.)

Antonyms

• Fastidious
• Meticulous
• Neat
• Fussy
• Exacting
• Discriminating

Adjective

1. marked by an absence of due or proper care or attention to detail; not concerned with cleanliness
   • unfastidious in her dress
2. not exacting in nutritional requirements