Word of the Day:

January 9, 2022

finesse

verb fuh-NESS

What it Means

Finesse means "to handle, deal with, or do (something) in an indirect and skillful or clever way."

// The forward finessed the ball past two defenders and powered it to the left of the goalie for a score.

Finesse in Context

"One of the most refreshing parts of the doc is the revelation that even the Beatles at their creative peak started off with some clunkers and finessed them into brilliant, lasting earworms we know and love today. The scrappy first take off 'I Got a Feeling' has nothing on the rollicking, perfect last take." — Brittany Wong, HuffPost, 2 Dec. 2021

More example sentences

Did You Know?

Finesse originally referred to refinement or delicacy of workmanship, structure, or texture; that sense is based on French fin, meaning "fine." In time, the noun was applied to the "delicate" handling of a situation. The related verb finesse had its start at gaming tables: if you finesse in a game like bridge or whist, you withhold your highest card or trump in the hope that a lower card will take the trick because the only opposing higher card is in the hand of an opponent who has already played. Similar uses of the verb implying skill and cleverness followed.

Quiz

Fill in the blanks to complete a word that describes a game of football characterized by brute force without finesse: s _ _ _ _ m _ _ t _.

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