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facile

 - 9 dictionary results

fac⋅ile

  [fas-il or, especially Brit., -ahyl]
Use facile in a Sentence
–adjective
1. moving, acting, working, proceeding, etc., with ease, sometimes with superficiality: facile fingers; a facile mind.
2. easily done, performed, used, etc.: a facile victory; a facile method.
3. easy or unconstrained, as manners or persons.
4. affable, agreeable, or complaisant; easily influenced: a facile temperament; facile people.
Origin:
1475–85; < L facilis that can be done, easy, equiv. to fac(ere) to do, make + -ilis -ile

Related forms:
fac⋅ile⋅ly, adverb
fac⋅ile⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. smooth, flowing, fluent; glib. 2. superficial. 3. bland, suave; urbane.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To facile
fac·ile   (fās'əl)   
adj.  

  1. Done or achieved with little effort or difficulty; easy. See Synonyms at easy.

  2. Working, acting, or speaking with effortless ease and fluency.

  3. Arrived at without due care, effort, or examination; superficial: proposed a facile solution to a complex problem.

  4. Readily manifested, together with an aura of insincerity and lack of depth: a facile slogan devised by politicians.

  5. Archaic Pleasingly mild, as in disposition or manner.


[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin facilis; see dhē- in Indo-European roots.]
fac'ile·ly adv., fac'ile·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Main Entry:  facile1
Part of Speech:  adj
Definition:  easily accomplished or attained; easy
Etymology:  Latin facilis 'easy to do'
Main Entry:  facile2
Part of Speech:  adj
Definition:  flowing; moving effortlessly
Etymology:  Latin facilis 'easy to do'
Main Entry:  facile3
Part of Speech:  adj
Definition:  affable and courteous; mild
Etymology:  Latin facilis 'easy to do'
Main Entry:  facile4
Part of Speech:  adj
Definition:  compliant, yielding; docile
Etymology:  Latin facilis 'easy to do'
Main Entry:  facile5
Part of Speech:  adj
Definition:  resourceful, quick; expert
Etymology:  Latin facilis 'easy to do'
Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon
Copyright © 2003-2009 Dictionary.com, LLC
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Word Origin & History

facile 
1483, from M.Fr. facile "easy," from L. facilis "easy to do" and, of persons, "pliant, courteous," from facere "to do" (see factitious). Facilitate is from 1611.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Computing Dictionary

Facile language
A concurrent extension of ML from ECRC.
(http://ecrc.de/facile/facile_home.html).
["Facile: A Symmetric Integration of Concurrent and Functional Programming", A. Giacalone et al, Intl J Parallel Prog 18(2):121-160, Apr 1989].
(1994-12-01)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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