delicate

CEFRC1

/ˈdɛl.ɪ.kət/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Easily damaged, broken, or harmed.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Small, gentle, and attractive.

Examples

  • He admired the delicate curve of her ear.

  • Indeed she is young and beautiful, but she is in delicate health.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
1

Also pronounced

  • /ˈdel.ɪ.kɪt/

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Characterized by a fine structure or thin lines.

  2. Intended for use with fragile items.

  3. Easily damaged or requiring careful handling.

More examples

In context

  • The delicate, graceful flowers are in bloom.

  • Those clothes are made from delicate lace.

  • The negotiations were very delicate.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The blank flower petals fell off when I touched them.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From Middle English delicat, from Latin dēlicātus (“giving pleasure, delightful, soft, luxurious, delicate, (in Medieval Latin also) fine, slender”), from dēlicia + -ātus (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), usually in plural dēliciae (“pleasure, delight, luxury”), from dēliciō (“to allure, entice”), from dē- (“away”) + laciō (“to lure, to deceive”), from Proto-Italic *lakjō (“to draw, pull”), of unknown ultimate origin. Compare delight, delicious and Spanish delgado (“thin, skinny”). The noun is from a substantivization of the adjective (see -ate).