nimble

[nim-buhl]

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adjective, nim·bler, nim·blest.

quick and light in movement; moving with ease; agile; active; rapid: nimble feet.

quick to understand, think, devise, etc.: a nimble mind.

cleverly contrived: a story with a nimble plot.

RELATED WORDS

dexterity, agility, skill, vivacity

Nearby words

Origin of nimble

before 1000; late Middle English nymel, earlier nemel, Old English nǣmel capable, equivalent to nǣm- (variant stem of niman to take; see nim¹) + -el -le

SYNONYMS FOR nimble

1. lively, brisk, swift. 2. alert.

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ANTONYMS FOR nimble

1. clumsy.

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Related forms

nim·ble·ness, nounnim·bly, adverbun·nim·ble, adjectiveun·nim·ble·ness, noun

un·nim·b·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for nimbleness

No man ever envies us the nimbleness by which we can elude logic and get at truth?
The Joys of Being a Woman|Winifred Kirkland
This manner of drinking indicates strength, nimbleness, and alertness.
The Syrian Christ|Abraham Mitrie Rihbany
They say it is very difficult to catch the cat, as it has all the nimbleness of its nature and the cleverness of a bhūt.
The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India - Volume IV of IV|R.V. Russell
Her movements were very graceful; but I still watched her with disapproval, admiring, however, her nimbleness and activity.
Annouchka|Ivan Sergheievitch Turgenef

Watching his opportunity, the man grasps one of these and transfers himself to it with the nimbleness of a monkey.
Concerning Animals and Other Matters|E.H. Aitken, (AKA Edward Hamilton)

British Dictionary definitions for nimbleness

nimble

adjective

agile, quick, and neat in movementnimble fingers

alert; acutea nimble intellect

Derived Formsnimbleness, nounnimbly, adverb

Word Origin for nimble

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for nimbleness

nimble

adj.

"agile, light-footed," c.1300, nemel, from Old English næmel "quick to grasp" (attested but once), related to niman "to take," from Proto-Germanic *nemanan (cf. Old Saxon, Old Dutch, Gothic niman, Old Norse nema, Old Frisian nima, German nehmen "to take"), from PIE root *nem- "to divide, distribute, allot," also "to take" (cf. Greek nemein "to deal out," nemesis "just indignation," Latin numerus "number," Lithuanian nuoma "rent, interest," Middle Irish nos "custom, usage"). With excrescent -b- from c.1500 (cf. limb (n.1)). Related: Nimbleness. In 17c., English had nimblechaps "talkative fellow."