facile

fac·ile

adjective \ˈfa-səl\

Definition of FACILE

1

a (1) : easily accomplished or attained <a facile victory> (2) : shallow, simplistic <I am not concerned … with offering any facile solution for so complex a problem — T. S. Eliot>

b : used or comprehended with ease

c : readily manifested and often lacking sincerity or depth <facile tears>

2

archaic : mild or pleasing in manner or disposition

3

a : ready, fluent <facile prose>

b : poised, assured

— fac·ile·ly \-sə(l)-lē\ adverb

— fac·ile·ness \-səl-nəs\ noun

Examples of FACILE

1. This problem needs more than just a facile solution.
2. He is a wonderfully facile writer.
3. But in the less palmy days of their marriage and the final years of his life, Lennon produced (with Yoko's help) shallow, facile recordings that cannibalized his early work. —Francine Prose, The Lives of the Muses, 2002
4. Melville shrank from atheism, and from all facile theisms. —John Updike, Hugging the Shore, (1983) 1984
5. … I saw that my old enemy was dead, Amy [Lowell], noble Amy. How I despised myself then for my facile self-pity and for my failure to die—how she seemed to have worsted me once again. —Conrad Aiken, 14 May 1925, in Selected Letters of Conrad Aiken, 1978

Origin of FACILE

Middle French, from Latin facilis, from facere to do — more at do

First Known Use: 15th century

Related to FACILE

Synonyms

superficial, one-dimensional, shallow, skin-deep

Antonyms

deep, profound

Related Words

cursory, hasty, oversimple, passing, sketchy; aimless, desultory, haphazard, hit-or-miss, random; limited, narrow, restricted

Near Antonyms

discerning, penetrant, penetrating; definitive, hard; broad, complete, comprehensive, exhaustive, extensive, far-reaching, wide; general, global, inclusive; detailed, in-depth; critical

See Synonym Discussion at easy

Rhymes with FACILE

acyl, castle, gracile, hassle, passel, tassel, vassal, wrestle