noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/pəˈfɛk.ʃ(ə).nɪ.z(ə)m/
UK:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
US:/pɚˈfɛk.ʃə.nɪ.zm̩/
rhymes with -ɛkʃənɪzəm
CMU ARPABET:P ER0 F EH1 K SH AH0 N IH2 Z AH0 M
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
An unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A belief that spiritual perfection may be achieved during life, or that it should be striven for.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: human-sciences, philosophy, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
a disposition to feel that anything less than perfect is unacceptable
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
his perfectionism seemed excessive to his students
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: disposition, temperament
History
Etymology
Etymology tree English perfection Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íďďō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ισμός (-ismós)der. English -ism English perfectionism From perfection + -ism.
Across languages
Translations
44 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
كَمَالِيَّة
(kamāliyya)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Armenian:
պերֆեկցիոնիզմ
(perfekcʻionizm)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Azerbaijani:
mükəmməliyyətçilik
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Belarusian:
перфекцыяні́зм
(pjerfjekcyjanízm)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Catalan:
perfeccionisme
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Chinese Mandarin:
完美主義 /完美主义
(wánměi zhǔyì)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Czech:
perfekcionismus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Czech:
perfekcionizmus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Dutch:
perfectionisme
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Estonian:
perfektsionism
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Estonian:
täiuslikkuse taotlus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Finnish:
perfektionismi
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
French:
perfectionnisme
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Galician:
perfeccionismo
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
German:
Perfektionismus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Greek:
τελειομανία
(teleiomanía)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Greek:
τελειοθηρία
(teleiothiría)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Hebrew:
פֶּרְפֶקְצְיוֹנִיזְם
(perfektzyónizem)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Hungarian:
maximalizmus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Hungarian:
perfekcionizmus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Icelandic:
fullkomnunarárátta
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Indonesian:
perfeksionisme
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Italian:
perfezionismo
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Japanese:
完全主義
(kanzenshugi)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Japanese:
完璧主義
(kanpekishugi)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Korean:
완벽주의
(wanbyeokjuui)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Norwegian Bokmål:
perfeksjonism
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Norwegian Nynorsk:
perfeksjonism
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Persian:
کمالطلبی
(kamâl-talabi)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Persian:
کمالگرایی
(kamâl-garâyi)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Persian:
کمالپرستی
(kamâl-parasti)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Polish:
perfekcjonizm
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Portuguese:
perfeccionismo
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Romanian:
perfecționism
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Russian:
перфекциони́зм
(perfekcionízm)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Serbo-Croatian:
перфекционѝзам
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Serbo-Croatian:
perfekcionìzam
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Slovak:
perfekcionizmus
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Slovene:
perfekcionizem
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Spanish:
perfeccionismo
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Swedish:
perfektionism
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Tagalog:
perpeksiyonismo
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Tamil:
செம்மைவாதம்
(cemmaivātam)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
Ukrainian:
перфекціоні́зм
(perfekcionízm)
— unwillingness to settle for anything less than perfection
