high-maintenance
Americanadjective
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needing frequent or major maintenance or repair.
Imported sports cars are high-maintenance.
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Informal. (of a person) demanding a great deal of attention, money, or effort.
His high-maintenance girlfriend refuses to get engaged without a big diamond ring.
adjective
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(of a piece of equipment, motor vehicle, etc) requiring regular maintenance to keep it in working order
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informal (of a person) requiring a high level of care and attention; demanding
Etymology
Origin of high-maintenance
First recorded in 1915–20 high-maintenance for def. 1; 1980–85 high-maintenance for def. 2; high ( def. ) + maintenance ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Especially when it’s an extremely high-maintenance cow?
I don’t need a “high-maintenance” lifestyle, just one where I can volunteer if I choose, enjoy living in my house and travel a little bit when it is warm out.
From MarketWatch
But adapting the high-maintenance, taste-challenged animal to other countries’ cuisines has pushed chefs to extremes.
The remaining option is to find a third country to take her in, but that too is fraught: few governments are likely to accept a "high-maintenance guest with serious legal problems and security needs", Mr Kugelman says.
From BBC
It’s no surprise that the industry has been desperate to dump its high-maintenance lover for almost as long as they’ve been together.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
