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
Even on homosexuality, many said Francis’ approach was one of subtlety that resonated in Africa and made the church’s doctrine more appealing on a continent with the world’s highest share of young people.
—
Elian Peltier, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
Virtual representation of that entity or process – A virtual model that doesn’t just mimic the original but evolves with it, capturing subtleties and complexities.
—Ben Chused, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
But subtlety is not what cold brew is best at accentuating.
—Matthew Korfhage, Wired News, 30 Apr. 2025
Andor’s subtlety probably won’t work for large swathes of the demographic coalition that Star Wars traditionally serves, so reliant on fan service or an errant Skywalker to juice devotion.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for subtlety
Elian Peltier, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
Virtual representation of that entity or process – A virtual model that doesn’t just mimic the original but evolves with it, capturing subtleties and complexities.
—Ben Chused, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
But subtlety is not what cold brew is best at accentuating.
—Matthew Korfhage, Wired News, 30 Apr. 2025
Andor’s subtlety probably won’t work for large swathes of the demographic coalition that Star Wars traditionally serves, so reliant on fan service or an errant Skywalker to juice devotion.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for subtlety
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subtlety
cunning
Noun
-
Neither his fearsome resolve nor his supreme cunning—which had enabled him to vanquish his rivals and spiritually crush his inner circle—was in evidence in 1941.—
Stephen Kotkin,
Foreign Affairs,
19 Sep. 2017
-
Despite being outnumbered 50-to-1 by the Five Families of the Italian mafia, the Westies’ legendary brutality and cunning have given them the leverage necessary to share the spoils through a fragile détente.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
18 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subtlety.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subtlety. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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