dainty

1 hard to please you can't afford to be dainty about food when you're starving Synonyms choosy (or choosey), finicky, delicate, demanding, exacting, fastidious, finical, finicking, fussbudgety, fussy, nice, old-maidish, particular, pernickety [chiefly British], persnickety, pickyRelated Words hyperfastidious, overdemanding, ultrafastidious; discerning, discriminating, selective; insightful, knowledgeable; captious, carping, caviling (or cavilling), critical, faultfinding, hypercritical, overcritical; careful, meticulous, painstaking, punctilious, scrupulous; queasy (also queazy), squeamish; peevish, petulant, prickly, touchy; niminy-piminy, prim, prissyNear Antonyms affable, breezy, carefree, devil-may-care, happy-go-lucky, lackadaisical, laid-back, low-pressure, relaxed; flexible, lax, loose; lenient, permissive; uncritical; indiscriminating, undiscriminatingAntonyms undemanding, unfastidious, unfussy

2 having qualities that appeal to a refined taste the dainty hors d'oeuvres were delicious, but not terribly filling Synonyms choice, delicate, elegant, exquisite, fine, rare, recherché, selectRelated Words bijou, jewellike; better, exceptional, fancy, high-grade, special; elite, exclusive; classic, excellent, fabulous, first-class, first-rate, grand, great, marvelous (or marvellous), noble, outstanding, par excellence, premium, prime, sensational, splendid, stellar, sterling, superb, superior, superlative, supernal, terrific, tip-top, top, top-notch, transcendant, unsurpassed, wonderful; ultrarareNear Antonyms coarse, gross, kitsch, kitschy, lowbrow, raffish, rough, rough-hewn, tasteless, uncultivated, uncultured, unpolished, unrefined, vulgar; commercial, mass-produced, popular; common, ordinary; average, lesser, mediocre, run-of-the-mill, run-of-the-mine (or run-of-mine), second-class, second-rate; deficient, inferior, low-grade, substandard, unacceptable, unsatisfactory, wanting

3 satisfying or pleasing because of fineness or mildness a set of dainty teacups that would be perfect for an elderly lady Synonyms airy, delicate, exquisite, nuanced, refined, subtleRelated Words choice, elegant, extraordinary, incomparable, peerless, preeminent, prime, rare, select, superior, superlative, supreme, transcendent, unsurpassed; picked, selected; fine, fragile, frailNear Antonyms coarse, crude, rough; common, ordinary; average, fair, indifferent, mediocre, medium, middling, run-of-the-mill, second-rateAntonyms robust, strong, sturdy

4 very pleasing to the sense of taste the sort of dainty finger foods that might be served at afternoon tea Synonyms ambrosial, appetizing, delicious, delectable, delish, flavorful, flavorsome, luscious, lush, mouthwatering, palatable, savory (also savoury), scrumptious, succulent, tasteful, tasty, toothsome, toothy, yummyRelated Words digestible, eatable, edible; delightful, heavenly, pleasing; agreeable, gratifying, pleasant; satisfying; choice, delicate, exquisite, rareNear Antonyms banal, boring, commonplace, tedious; noisome, smelly, stinky; noxious, unwholesome; miserable, wretched; abhorrent, abominable, awful, detestable, disagreeable, disgusting, foul, horrid, nauseating, offensive, repellent (also repellant), repugnant, repulsive, sickening, unpleasantAntonyms distasteful, flat, flavorless, insipid, stale, tasteless, unappetizing, unpalatable, unsavory, yucky (also yukky)