high-maintenance
4 antonyms and opposites of high-maintenance, grouped by meaning.
Adjective — Of a person, needing a great deal of attention, reassurance or effort to keep happy.
Synonyms by Meaning
1. adjective informal
Of a person, needing a great deal of attention, reassurance or effort to keep happy.
“He's high-maintenance: three texts a day or he assumes something is wrong.”
Opposites
2. adjective
Of a thing, requiring frequent care, servicing or expense to keep in good condition.
“A pool is beautiful and thoroughly high-maintenance.”
Opposites
Antonyms
How to Use High-Maintenance
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
Informal; the person sense is judgemental, the object sense is neutral.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is calling someone high-maintenance an insult?
Usually, though a mild one. It suggests the person is hard work and can be unfairly aimed at anyone with clear standards or needs. Many people now use it about themselves, half-jokingly, to warn others what to expect.
What is the difference between high-maintenance and demanding?
Demanding is about what someone asks of others, often with authority behind it. High-maintenance is about the ongoing effort of keeping them content, and it applies to objects and pets as readily as to people.
Is high-maintenance hyphenated?
Hyphenate it before a noun, as in a high-maintenance garden. After the verb it can go either way, though the hyphen is still very common: the garden is high-maintenance.