nuance
[noo-ahns, nyoo-, noo-ahns, nyoo-; French ny-ahns]
- a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc.
- a very slight difference or variation in color or tone.
Show More
Origin of nuance
1775–85; < French: shade, hue, equivalent to nu(er) to shade (literally, to cloud < Vulgar Latin *nūbāre, derivative of *nūba, for Latin nūbēs cloud) + -ance -ance
Synonyms
See more synonyms for nuance on Thesaurus.com1. subtlety, nicety, hint, refinement.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for nuances
Contemporary Examples
But even if he didn't understand all of the nuances of Lou's disability, he was convinced it was serious.
His only offense was a moral one, though none of his critics could possibly know the terms and nuances of his marriage.
The pair traveled to Penn Hills at least a dozen times over three months, teasing out the nuances and former life of the property.
A Most Illegal Adventure with New York City’s Wildest Underground Event PlannersNina Strochlic
December 16, 2013
How many of the decision makers in Israel can confidently respond to the nuances of API?
It is part of a continuing quest to sort through the nuances and reach a modern conclusion in these turbulent times.
The New Era of Evolution Helps Pols Switch Stance on Issues from Gay Marriage to ImmigrationHoward Kurtz
April 3, 2013
Historical Examples
He was a stickler for the nuances of behaviour, especially in women.
Painted VeilsJames Huneker
It is short, pregnant—what is to follow is incorporated in its nuances.
IconoclastsJames Huneker
It has been well said that words are inadequate to describe the nuances of taste.
A History of Chinese LiteratureHerbert A. Giles
"The correspondences of nuances," he sings to his neighbour, who happens to be Whistler.
UnicornsJames Huneker
In spite of the shock, the newness, Dr. Stern was sensitive to nuances.
West Of The SunEdgar Pangborn
nuance
- a subtle difference in colour, meaning, tone, etc; a shade or graduation
Show More
- to give subtle differences tocarefully nuanced words
Show More
Word Origin
C18: from French, from nuer to show light and shade, ultimately from Latin nūbēs a cloud
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 nuances
nuance
v.
1886, from nuance (n.). Related: Nuanced.
Show More
nuance
n.
1781, from French nuance "slight difference, shade of color" (17c.), from nuer "to shade," from nue "cloud," from Gallo-Romance *nuba, from Latin nubes "a cloud, mist, vapor," from PIE *sneudh- "fog" (cf. Avestan snaoda "clouds," Latin obnubere "to veil," Welsh nudd "fog," Greek nython, in Hesychius "dark, dusky"). According to Klein, a reference to "the different colors of the clouds."
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
nuance
[(nooh-ahns)]
A fine shade of meaning: “I liked the film, but I know I missed some of its nuances.”
Show More
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.