finesse
Americannoun
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extreme delicacy or subtlety in action, performance, skill, discrimination, taste, etc.
- Synonyms:
- sensibility, sensitivity, circumspection, diplomacy, tact
-
skill in handling a difficult or highly sensitive situation; adroit and artful management.
exceptional diplomatic finesse.
- Synonyms:
- sensibility, sensitivity, circumspection, diplomacy, tact
-
a trick, artifice, or stratagem.
-
Bridge, Whist. an attempt to win a trick with a card while holding a higher card not in sequence with it, in the hope that the card or cards between will not be played.
verb (used without object)
-
to use finesse or artifice.
-
to make a finesse at cards.
verb (used with object)
-
to bring about by finesse or artifice.
-
to avoid; circumvent.
-
to make a finesse with (a card).
-
to force the playing of (a card) by a finesse.
noun
-
elegant skill in style or performance
-
subtlety and tact in handling difficult situations
-
bridge whist an attempt to win a trick when opponents hold a high card in the suit led by playing a lower card, hoping the opponent who has already played holds the missing card
-
a trick, artifice, or strategy
verb
-
to manage or bring about with finesse
-
to play (a card) as a finesse
Etymology
Origin of finesse
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English: “degree of excellence or purity,” from Middle French, from fin fine 1 + -esse -ice
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the second cast, Christine Shevchenko fell far short of Ms. Teuscher’s finesse, but she essayed the opening “Preghiera” movement with more of its requisite lilt and shimmer than Ms. Teuscher did.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
In their briefings, government lawyers finesse a sanitized version into a clean narrative of law-abiding responsibility.
From Slate • Feb. 18, 2026
Brooks points out that one way high-tech promoters finesse their exaggerated promises is through subtle redefinition.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 6, 2026
Winter salads demand a little more finesse than their warm-weather counterparts, but the effort is worth it.
From Salon • Dec. 16, 2025
The words start to spill out, without finesse or sophistication.
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
