nimble

[nim-buhl]

adjective

nimbler, nimblest 

1. quick and light in movement; moving with ease; agile; active; rapid.

   nimble feet.

   Synonyms: spry, sprightly, brisk, lively
   Antonyms: ungainly, clumsy

2. quick to understand, think, devise, etc..

   a nimble mind.

   Synonyms: keen, sharp, quick-witted

3. cleverly contrived.

   a story with a nimble plot.

nimble

/ ˈnɪmbəl /

adjective

1. agile, quick, and neat in movement

   nimble fingers

2. alert; acute

   a nimble intellect

Other Word Forms

• nimbleness noun
• nimbly adverb
• unnimble adjective
• unnimbleness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of nimble¹

First recorded before 1000; late Middle English nymel, earlier nemel, Old English nǣmel “capable,” equivalent to nǣm- (variant stem of niman “to take”; nim ¹ ) + -el -le

Word History and Origins

Origin of nimble¹

Old English nǣmel quick to grasp, and numol quick at seizing, both from niman to take

Example Sentences

Woo flies the highest and the farthest, but he uses his nimble limbs to catch a tree branch and break his fall.

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“But these dancers are far more nimble than chickens, and better fliers, too,” she decided.

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But a more fitting name for this feat of AI is American ingenuity, which includes a mix of human agency, nimble capital and a culture of dynamism.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

There, Scipio’s nimble movements—he divided his forces, closed in on the Carthaginian wings and panicked their elephants—and strict discipline yielded a decisive victory.

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Pundits at the time claimed that women had nimbler fingers, or made fewer errors.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• adept 
• adroit 
• agile 
• bright 
• deft 
• lithe 
• lively 
• quick 
• skillful 
• swift