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delicacy

 
Dictionary: del·i·ca·cy   (dĕl'ĭ-kə-sē) pronunciation
n., pl., -cies.
  1. The quality of being delicate.
  2. Something pleasing and appealing, especially a choice food.
  3. Fineness of appearance, construction, or execution; elegance: brushwork of great delicacy.
  4. Frailty of bodily constitution or health.
  5. Sensitivity of perception, discrimination, or taste; refinement.
    1. Sensitivity to the feelings of others; tact: phrased the apology with delicacy.
    2. Sensitivity to what is proper; propriety.
    3. Undue sensitivity to or concern with what may be considered offensive or improper; squeamishness: scenes that might offend a viewer's delicacy.
  6. The need for tact in treatment or handling: a topic of some delicacy.
  7. Sensitivity to very small changes; precision: the delicacy of a set of scales.

[Middle English delicacie, from delicat, delicate. See delicate.]


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Thesaurus: delicacy
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noun

  1. Something fine and delicious, especially a food: dainty, morsel, tidbit, treat. Informal goody. See good/bad, ingestion.
  2. The condition of being infirm or physically weak: debility, decrepitude, delicateness, feebleness, flimsiness, fragileness, fragility, frailness, frailty, infirmity, insubstantiality, puniness, unsoundness, unsubstantiality, weakliness, weakness. See strong/weak.

Antonyms: delicacy
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n

Definition: daintiness, fineness of structure
Antonyms: coarseness, heaviness, indelicacy, inelegance, robustness, roughness


WordNet: delicacy
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has 7 meanings:

Meaning #1: the quality of being beautiful and delicate in appearance
  Synonyms: daintiness, fineness

Meaning #2: something considered choice to eat
  Synonyms: dainty, goody, kickshaw, treat

Meaning #3: refined taste; tact
  Synonym: discretion

Meaning #4: smallness of stature
  Synonym: slightness

Meaning #5: lack of physical strength
  Synonym: fragility

Meaning #6: subtly skillful handling of a situation
  Synonyms: diplomacy, discreetness, finesse

Meaning #7: lightness in movement or manner
  Synonym: airiness


Translations: Delicacy
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - finhed, skrøbelighed, ømtålelighed, delikatesse, takt, følsomhed

Nederlands (Dutch)
verfijndheid, broosheid, neteligheid, kiesheid, tact, delicatesse

Français (French)
n. - délicatesse, finesse, discrétion, sensibilité, tact, mets délicat

Deutsch (German)
n. - Empfindlichkeit, Zartgefühl, Delikatesse

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - λεπτότητα, αβρότητα, (μαγειρ.) λιχουδιά, γλύκισμα

Italiano (Italian)
delicatezza, tatto, leccornia, discrezione, raffinatezza

Português (Portuguese)
n. - delicadeza (f), guloseima (f)

Русский (Russian)
деликатность, нежность, хрупкость, изысканность, чувствительность, деликатес

Español (Spanish)
n. - fragilidad, delicadeza, manjar delicado, regalo del paladar, consideración, tacto, finura

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - finhet, sprödhet, spädhet, finess, delikatess

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
精美, 娇嫩, 柔软, 优雅

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 精美, 嬌嫩, 柔軟, 優雅

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 섬세함, 취급에 주의를 요함, 부서지기 쉬움, 다루기 힘든

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 繊細さ, 壊れやすさ, 微妙さ, ひ弱さ, 心づかい, 思いやり, 慎み, 精巧さ, 感度のよさ, おいしいもの

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) رقه, رهافه, طعام شهي أو مترف‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מעדן, רגישות, עדינות‬


 
 
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coarseness
morbidezza
sweetmeat

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Antonyms. © 1999-2009 by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more