definitions

tactile

[ tak-til, -tahyl ]
/ ˈtæk tɪl, -taɪl /
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tactile ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of, pertaining to, endowed with, or affecting the sense of touch.
perceptible to the touch; tangible.

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RELATED WORDS

palpable, tactual, material, physical, solid, tangible

Nearby words

tactical wire, tactically, tactician, tacticity, tactics, tactile, tactile anesthesia, tactile corpuscle, tactile disk, tactile fremitus, tactile hair

Origin of tactile

1605–15; < Latin tāctilis tangible, equivalent to tāct(us) (past participle of tangere to touch) + -ilis -ile

Related forms

tac·til·i·ty [tak-til-i-tee] /tækˈtɪl ɪ ti/, nounnon·tac·tile, adjectivenon·tac·til·i·ty, nounun·tac·tile, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tactile

British Dictionary definitions for tactile

tactile

/ (ˈtæktaɪl) /

adjective

of, relating to, affecting, or having a sense of toucha tactile organ; tactile stimuli
rare capable of being touched; tangible

Derived Forms

tactility (tækˈtɪlɪtɪ), noun

Word Origin for tactile

C17: from Latin tactilis, from tangere to touch
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

Medicine definitions for tactile

tactile

[ tăk′təl, -tīl′ ]

adj.

Perceptible to the sense of touch; tangible.
Used for feeling.
Of, relating to, or proceeding from the sense of touch; tactual.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Science definitions for tactile

tactile

[ tăk′təl, tăk′tīl′ ]

Used for or sensitive to touch.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.