tactile
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, endowed with, or affecting the sense of touch.
-
perceptible to the touch; tangible.
adjective
-
of, relating to, affecting, or having a sense of touch
a tactile organ
tactile stimuli
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rare capable of being touched; tangible
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of tactile
1605–15; < Latin tāctilis tangible, equivalent to tāct ( us ) (past participle of tangere to touch) + -ilis -ile
Explanation
Tactile has to do with the sense of touch. There's a huge tactile difference between smooth glass and rough sandpaper. Anything to do with touch can be described as tactile. Ever notice how a dog would rather sleep on a soft blanket than a rubbery leather couch? That's because dogs have tactile preferences: the softer the better. Different textures of food are tactile — they feel different in your mouth, aside from how they taste. You deal with the world of tactile things every day — you use your tactile sense whenever you touch anything.
Vocabulary lists containing tactile
Fahrenheit 451
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Common Senses: Tact, Tang ("Touch")
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100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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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.
She quickly discovered that available pelvic models have hard plastic shells around the cervix where providers practice injecting; this prevents trainees from getting the necessary tactile feedback to learn where to inject.
From Slate • Jun. 7, 2026
“Kids in the preschool and kindergarten years really benefit from hands-on play and tactile learning experiences,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026
Preparing food becomes a regulatory act — a way to channel overwhelming emotion into something tactile and nourishing.
From Salon • Feb. 15, 2026
Historically, tactile sensing always seemed like a technology that was 10 years away, Lepora says.
From BBC • Feb. 12, 2026
He believed in a child-centered education that promoted understanding the world from the child’s level, taking into account individual development and concrete, tactile experiences such as working directly with plants, minerals for science, etc.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
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.
