as in cunning
skill in achieving one's ends through indirect, subtle, or underhanded means
we appreciated the subtlety with which our host indicated that it was time to leave: he volunteered to pack us a little lunch for the road
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Recent Examples of subtlety
Through each frame, Lee balances strength with subtlety, discipline with freedom.
—
Fairchild Studio, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2025
The striking arrow shapes are an empowering accessory, yet there’s a subtlety in the muted bronze, ebony, and antique diamonds (which have a softer shimmer than modern cuts).
—Jill Newman, Robb Report, 19 Oct. 2025
Harper has a good feel for finding the subtleties in straightforward situations to create an advantage.
—Jared Weiss, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
However, by creating sharp boundaries, the schema obscured the subtleties of what happened between them.
—Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for subtlety
Fairchild Studio, Footwear News, 22 Oct. 2025
The striking arrow shapes are an empowering accessory, yet there’s a subtlety in the muted bronze, ebony, and antique diamonds (which have a softer shimmer than modern cuts).
—Jill Newman, Robb Report, 19 Oct. 2025
Harper has a good feel for finding the subtleties in straightforward situations to create an advantage.
—Jared Weiss, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
However, by creating sharp boundaries, the schema obscured the subtleties of what happened between them.
—Yasemin Saplakoglu, Quanta Magazine, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for subtlety
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subtlety
Noun
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Coaching successfully in such conditions requires a mixture of humility and self-confidence, as well as a certain cunning.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
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The story follows Toto, an almost completely blind cat with incredible ninja skills, who must use her courage and cunning to stop a deadly King Cobra that has escaped onto the streets of London, alongside her cheeky brother Silver.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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There is a real seriousness to the score — the scheming bad-guy music has the artfulness of Prokofiev, and even the sneaking-around cues have musical integrity and structure.—
Tim Greiving,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subtlety.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subtlety. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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