Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The quality of being deft; neat or subtle dexterity; aptness.
  • noun Elegance; beauty.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The quality of being deft.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The characteristic of being deft.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun skillful performance or ability without difficulty

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The workmen, being anxious to display their skill to an expert, surpassed themselves in deftness and activity.

    Indiana 1900

  • 'made pliable,' or 'flexible' conveying the notion of deftness and dexterity rather than that of simple strength.

    Expositions of Holy Scripture Alexander Maclaren 1868

  • She possesses the secret of that feminine deftness which is the great set-off to feminine weakness.

    The French Immortals Series — Complete Various

  • She possesses the secret of that feminine deftness which is the great set-off to feminine weakness.

    The Ink-Stain (Tache d'encre) — Complete Ren�� Bazin 1892

  • That's not "deftness," it's crude corruption of the kind that Reid and the Democrats ran against in 2006 and 2008.

    GayPatriot 2009

  • David's usual deftness at juggling several simultaneous plotlines and suddenly uniting them to comic effect seems to have partly deserted him, or deserted his co-writers the credits list Larry, Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schaffer as scriptwriters.

    Curb your Enthusiasm – season eight, episode one 2011

  • That man was Dick Fuld, who later achieved notoriety as the captain of the investment bank as it went down with all hands, but even in the mid 1980s he was demonstrating a deftness of touch.

    Big Bang's shockwaves left us with today's big bust 2011

  • With the strength and deftness of the athlete he was, Rickie pushed her against the side of the stall and thrust his rod into her, swallowing the pleasurable growl of penetration that was trying to escape his lips.

    I.O.U. Elle 2011

  • And that contra many wags, the deftness and skill of Bill Cinton was of no use when he faced similar headwinds?

    TV SoundOff: Sunday Talking Heads The Huffington Post News Team 2010

  • It will come by humor, by deftness, by ducking the police, season after season after season.

    Donna Schaper: You Can't Evict The Human Spirit Donna Schaper 2011

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