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subtle - 4 dictionary results

sub⋅tle

  [suht-l]
Use subtle in a Sentence
–adjective, -tler, -tlest.
1. thin, tenuous, or rarefied, as a fluid or an odor.
2. fine or delicate in meaning or intent; difficult to perceive or understand: subtle irony.
3. delicate or faint and mysterious: a subtle smile.
4. requiring mental acuteness, penetration, or discernment: a subtle philosophy.
5. characterized by mental acuteness or penetration: a subtle understanding.
6. cunning, wily, or crafty: a subtle liar.
7. insidious in operation: subtle poison.
8. skillful, clever, or ingenious: a subtle painter.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME sotil < OF < L subtīlis subtile (b of mod. sp. < L)

Related forms:
sub⋅tle⋅ness, noun
subtly, adverb

Synonyms:
6. sly, tricky, foxy, slick.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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sub·tle   (sŭt'l)   
adj.   sub·tler, sub·tlest
    1. So slight as to be difficult to detect or describe; elusive: a subtle smile.
    2. Difficult to understand; abstruse: an argument whose subtle point was lost on her opponent.
    3. Characterized by skill or ingenuity; clever.
    4. Crafty or sly; devious.
    5. Operating in a hidden, usually injurious way; insidious: a subtle poison.
  2. Able to make fine distinctions: a subtle mind.
    1. Characterized by skill or ingenuity; clever.
    2. Crafty or sly; devious.
    3. Operating in a hidden, usually injurious way; insidious: a subtle poison.

[Middle English sotil, from Old French, from Latin subtīlis; see teks- in Indo-European roots.]
sub'tle·ness n., sub'tly adv.
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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Subtle

Sub"tle\, a. [Compar. Subtler; superl. Subtlest.] [OE. sotil, subtil, OF. soutil, later subtil, F. subtil, L. subtilis; probably, originally, woven fine, and fr. sub under + tela a web, fr. texere to weave. See Text, and cf. Subtile.]

1. Sly in design; artful; cunning; insinuating; subtile; -- applied to persons; as, a subtle foe. "A subtle traitor." --Shak.

2. Cunningly devised; crafty; treacherous; as, a subtle stratagem.

3. Characterized by refinement and niceness in drawing distinctions; nicely discriminating; -- said of persons; as, a subtle logician; refined; tenuous; sinuous; insinuating; hence, penetrative or pervasive; -- said of the mind; its faculties, or its operations; as, a subtle intellect; a subtle imagination; a subtle process of thought; also, difficult of apprehension; elusive.

Things remote from use, obscure and subtle. --Milton.

4. Smooth and deceptive. [Obs.]

Like to a bowl upon a subtle ground [bowling ground]. --Shak.

Syn: Artful; crafty; cunning; shrewd; sly; wily.

Usage: Subtle is the most comprehensive of these epithets and implies the finest intellectual quality. See Shrewd, and Cunning.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : subtle
Spanish: sutil,
German: fein,
Japanese: 微妙な
More Translations »

subtle 
c.1300, sutel, soutil, in ref. to things, "of thin consistency;" in ref. to craftsmen, "skilled, clever," from O.Fr. soutil, from L. subtilis "fine, thin, delicate, finely woven," from sub "under" + -tilis, from tela "web" and texere "to weave" (see texture). The spelling with -b- reflects confusion with subtile. Most non-material senses were present by late 14c.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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