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 their briefings, government lawyers finesse a sanitized version into a clean narrative of law-abiding responsibility.
From Slate • Feb. 18, 2026
Meanwhile, aerially, Zubimendi directs headers with a level of finesse, finding team-mates rather than simply looking to head the ball away.
From BBC • Feb. 15, 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
He was looking for finesse but I came after him with muscle.
From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers
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.
