tactile

tac·tile

adjective \ˈtak-t^əl, -ˌtī(-ə)l\

Definition of TACTILE

1

: perceptible by touch : tangible

2

: of, relating to, or being the sense of touch

— tac·tile·ly \-tə-lē, -ˌtīl-lē\ adverb

Examples of TACTILE

1. The thick brushstrokes give the painting a tactile quality.
2. He not only had visual difficulties but tactile ones, too—witness his grasping his wife's head and mistaking it for a hat … —Oliver Sacks, New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2002
3. There is a tactile and therefore somatic dimension to stroking the chalk that keeps the artist in constant, responsible and responsive touch with his emerging creation. —Jed Perl, New Republic, 17 June 2002
4. The keyboard has good tactile feedback, and the touch pad is responsive without being too twitchy. —Bruce Brown, PC Magazine, 20 Feb. 2001
5. … nothing prepared me for the tactile reality of the original volumes, leaf after carefully written leaf over which his hand had travelled … —Edmund Morris, New Yorker, 16 Jan. 1995
6. Near midday the heat of the sun bounced up from the bare patches of soil to hit with an almost tactile force. —Edward O. Wilson, Smithsonian, October 1984

Origin of TACTILE

French or Latin; French, from Latin tactilis, from tangere to touch — more at tangent

First Known Use: 1615

Rhymes with TACTILE

dactyl