Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
verb
To make subtle; to make thin or fine; to make less gross or coarse.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
To refine; to spin into niceties.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
To use subtle arguments or distinctions.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
make (senses) more keen
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: subtilise
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: sharpen, heighten
verb
make more subtle or refined
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: rarefy, sublimate
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: change, alter, modify
verb
mark fine distinctions and subtleties, as among words
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: discriminate, know apart
History
From French subtiliser; equivalent to subtle + -ize.
