Synonym Chooser

How is the word adroit different from other adjectives like it?

The words deft and dexterous are common synonyms of adroit. While all three words mean "ready and skilled in physical movement," adroit implies dexterity but usually also stresses resourcefulness or artfulness or inventiveness.

the magician's adroit response to the failure of her prop won applause

When might deft be a better fit than adroit?

Although the words deft and adroit have much in common, deft emphasizes lightness, neatness, and sureness of touch or handling.

a surgeon's deft manipulation of the scalpel

In what contexts can dexterous take the place of adroit?

The words dexterous and adroit can be used in similar contexts, but dexterous implies expertness with consequent facility and quickness in manipulation.

unrolled the sleeping bag with a dexterous toss

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of adroit These mother-and-son exchanges rinse and repeat in the first stages of the storytelling, under the adroit direction of Rob Lutfy, mingling tension and absurdity. David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 June 2023 Six months ago, his historic landslide victory was widely lauded, viewed as the triumph of a politically adroit change-maker whose centrist policies had swept him to power. Dan Bilefsky, New York Times, 7 May 2023 The Premonitions Bureau, an adroit debut from the New Yorker staff writer Sam Knight, draws us into a world not-that-far-gone in which psychic phenomena were yet untamed by science and uncanny sensations still whispered of the supernatural, of cosmic secrets. Ian Beacock, The New Republic, 25 Aug. 2022 Both men were adroit in working the local political system, each was fixated on focal sepsis as the cause of psychosis, and each came to lose his capacity for objectivity in the pursuit of his goal. Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 11 Jan. 2015 See All Example Sentences for adroit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adroit
Adjective
  • Newton’s jewels are alive with her mastery of design, composition, skillful use of materials, and an instinct for creating irresistible objects.
    Kyle Roderick, Forbes.com, 24 Apr. 2025
  • The show’s real draw is its cast, which expands to include Matthew Rhys as a troubled detective, and a skillful adaptation that highlights the glossiest, cleverest elements of classic Christie—and adds a pinch of eros.
    Judy Berman, Time, 30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The look was designed by Tolu Coker, a British-Nigerian designer celebrated for masterful tailoring that fuses masculine aesthetics with feminine silhouettes, brought to life through loud, vivid patterns.
    Essence, Essence, 9 May 2025
  • Draymond Green scored early and orchestrated the Warriors’ masterful defense, coach Steve Kerr adapted on the fly and Jimmy Butler led the offense down the stretch.
    Pueng Vongs, Mercury News, 8 May 2025
Adjective
  • The long-running film franchise first started with 1993's Sniper starring Tom Berenger as expert American gunner Thomas Beckett.
    Christopher Rudolph, People.com, 10 May 2025
  • As of Thursday, expert predictions centered on a likely reentry of Kosmos 482 early Saturday.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 8 May 2025
Adjective
  • Wirtz is focused more on the micro, with delicate touches and deft flicks, compared to Szoboszlai’s macro traits of energy and power.
    Mark Carey, New York Times, 16 May 2025
  • The walls of the rectum (the inside of your butt) are delicate.
    Alexander Cheves, Them., 16 May 2025
Adjective
  • Macklem speaks perhaps 80 percent of the words in the play, spinning long, disarming, verbally dexterous monologues.
    Jesse Green, New York Times, 9 May 2025
  • This new generation of Atlas is stronger and more dexterous than its predecessors, with a broader range of motion that sometimes exceeds human capabilities.
    Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report, FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • Despite her formidable workload as Dior’s artistic director of women’s collections, Chiuri has also taken on a personal project: restoring a historic theater in her hometown.
    Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 14 May 2025
  • The partners are co-developing the project with plans to lock casting and pre-production by year’s end before cameras roll in Q1 2026. MAP, established in 2015, has built an portfolio blending commercial success with artistic credibility.
    Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 13 May 2025
Adjective
  • Wirtz is focused more on the micro, with delicate touches and deft flicks, compared to Szoboszlai’s macro traits of energy and power.
    Mark Carey, New York Times, 16 May 2025
  • While those discussions could be weighed down by politics, Macfarlane’s touch is deft, giving us exactly enough to consider the question while also showing us how this is not just about rivers but about us.
    Valorie Castellanos Clark, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Adroit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adroit. Accessed 25 May. 2025.

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