ねちっこい

i-adjective

persistent; tenacious; clingy

Conjugation

	Affirmative	Negative
Present	ねちっこい	ねちっこくない
Past	ねちっこかった	ねちっこくなかった
て form	ねちっこくて	ねちっこくなくて
Adverbial	ねちっこく	—
Conditional ば	ねちっこければ	ねちっこくなければ
Conditional たら	ねちっこかったら	ねちっこくなかったら

1. persistent; tenacious; relentless; clingy

Describes someone or something that is annoyingly persistent, sticky in manner, or won't let go. Usually carries a negative nuance of being overly insistent or tedious.

ねちっこい性格(せいかく)だ。

He has a persistent personality.

ねちっこく質問(しつもん)を繰(く)り返(かえ)す記者(きしゃ)がいた。

There was a reporter who kept asking questions relentlessly.

上司(じょうし)のねちっこい説教(せっきょう)に、みんなうんざりしていた。

Everyone was fed up with the boss's long-winded, nagging lecture.

A colloquial adjective with a strongly negative nuance, describing behavior that is annoyingly persistent or sticky. The word evokes the image of something that clings and won't let go. Variant form: ねちこい (without the っ).

Common collocations

ねちっこい性格(せいかく) — clingy/persistent personality
ねちっこい言(い)い方(かた) — nagging way of speaking
ねちっこく責(せ)める — to criticize persistently
ねちっこい視線(しせん) — a lingering, clinging gaze

Similar words

しつこい — persistent, insistent; very close synonym, slightly more standard
くどい — long-winded, repetitive; focuses on verbal tedium
粘(ねば)り強(づよ)い — tenacious, persevering; positive nuance of not giving up

Related Words

Compare: しつこい (persistent, insistent)

Compare: くどい (long-winded, repetitive)

Compare: 粘(ねば)り強(づよ)い (tenacious, persevering)

general

Added 2026.3.26 23:25 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

19500/19702_nechikkoi