pedantical


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pedantical

adjective
Characterized by a narrow concern for book learning and formal rules, without knowledge or experience of practical matters:
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References in periodicals archive ?
Shakespearean Words Auspicious B; Castigate C; Dauntless B; Equivocal A; Pedantical C; Refractory B; Sanctimonious A; Unmitigated C.
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By which they may perceive how highly Translations may be improved." Brome, like Dryden after him, praises Denham at the expense of more grammatical translators: "as this Book consists of several men's endeavors, so those several men went several ways; but all studied to shun a nice Pedantical Translation, which Horace could not abide." He does not include Milton's "Pyrrha Ode" (and presumably no one could have until the publication of the 1673 Poems), yet "to crown" his Horace anthology he includes Ben Jonson's translation of The Art of Poetry, a translation Dryden would censure for awkwardness born of literalness.
Who is pressing you now?: A reconsideration of Milton's "Pyrrha Ode"