as in faintly
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Recent Examples of delicately
As servers delicately navigate around the women, serving plates of food that will never be touched, micro-aggressions are tossed, disguised as jokes.
—
Literary Hub, 24 Feb. 2026
Poison Girl is delicately sweet, with a prominent orange blossom top note and a romantic vanilla base.
—Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 22 Feb. 2026
On Noah junior had settled the lighter skin, pencil-line lips, and delicately bridged nose of his father, while Jesse's nose was soft as gingerbread, his eyes bulgy, his head big, and too much of his lower lip turned over to hope he'd ever be taken for a black aristocrat.
—Gail Sheehy, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
As Knight took it off her neck and placed it in his left hand, Wroblewski delicately held the precious medal, admired it and smiled widely.
—Michael Russo, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2026
Entitled also makes a compelling case that Andrew is—to put it delicately—boorish and dim.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 19 Feb. 2026
The paint is splotchy in places and the photographs are pinned delicately to a dark surface, their edges curling, giving the overall installation a textured materiality.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
The rest of her hair was pulled up in an undone updo, with a handful of delicately curled tendrils falling down her shoulders for extra romantic effect.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 9 Feb. 2026
The Fugitive Slave Act was part of a larger set of bills known collectively as the Compromise of 1850, which sought to balance, ever so delicately, the political interests of the North and the South on the question of slavery.
—Stephen Mihm, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
Literary Hub, 24 Feb. 2026
Poison Girl is delicately sweet, with a prominent orange blossom top note and a romantic vanilla base.
—Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 22 Feb. 2026
On Noah junior had settled the lighter skin, pencil-line lips, and delicately bridged nose of his father, while Jesse's nose was soft as gingerbread, his eyes bulgy, his head big, and too much of his lower lip turned over to hope he'd ever be taken for a black aristocrat.
—Gail Sheehy, Vanity Fair, 20 Feb. 2026
As Knight took it off her neck and placed it in his left hand, Wroblewski delicately held the precious medal, admired it and smiled widely.
—Michael Russo, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2026
Entitled also makes a compelling case that Andrew is—to put it delicately—boorish and dim.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 19 Feb. 2026
The paint is splotchy in places and the photographs are pinned delicately to a dark surface, their edges curling, giving the overall installation a textured materiality.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2026
The rest of her hair was pulled up in an undone updo, with a handful of delicately curled tendrils falling down her shoulders for extra romantic effect.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 9 Feb. 2026
The Fugitive Slave Act was part of a larger set of bills known collectively as the Compromise of 1850, which sought to balance, ever so delicately, the political interests of the North and the South on the question of slavery.
—Stephen Mihm, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for delicately
Adverb
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Just brine, warm vegetation, and the faintly mineral smell of volcanic rock baking in January sun.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Even with the latch secured, the music was still faintly audible.—
Nathan Diller,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
His 2025 season started somewhat shakily, then included a quadriceps injury that cost him two games and opened the door for Jake Moody to temporarily handle the kicking duties.—
Dan Wiederer,
New York Times,
27 Jan. 2026
-
On a rainy Saturday last summer, I can be found paddling out, popping up, and generally hanging ten—goofily, shakily, semi-triumphantly—in a skylit East Village walk-up.—
Sally Singer,
Vogue,
10 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
Make sure the tires reconnect with the road - During the skid, wait until the tires reconnect with the road and then gently straighten the wheels to regain control.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Cover the seed with a very thin layer of soil, approximately 1/8 inch thick, by gently raking the area.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
11 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
Instead, the commissioner weakly would not even commit to an investigation of Tisch at the Super Bowl.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
24 Feb. 2026
-
In 1946, Congress responded weakly to mounting overseas food needs.—
Peter Simons,
The Conversation,
16 Jan. 2026
Adverb
-
Heathcliff’s racial ambiguity — so central to the novel’s violence and otherness — is feebly erased.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
11 Feb. 2026
-
One man aboard the boat knew how to navigate the mangroves and sandbars of the keys, and with the late summer sun beating down on the rafters, the boat pushed out feebly into the open ocean.—
Miriam Pensack,
The Dial,
30 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Your 12th House of Spirituality calls softly as the Moon opposes auspicious Jupiter, encouraging you to find quiet time even as your 6th House of Work demands practical action.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Linen, for example, can further enhance this layered approach, introducing a softly rumpled texture that reinforces lived-in comfort in the form of a duvet cover or throw blanket at the foot of the bed.—
Jacorey Moon,
Architectural Digest,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Delicately.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/delicately. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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