| 释义 |
subtletyn. Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: French sotilté ; subtle adj., -ty suffix1. Etymology: Partly (i) < Anglo-Norman sotilté, sotelté, sotileté, sotilleté, sutelté, sutilté, sutiltie, Old French soutilté, Old French, Middle French soutilleté, soutilletie (also Anglo-Norman and Old French subtileté , Anglo-Norman and Old French, Middle French, French subtilité , Old French soubtilité , subtiliteit , suptiliteit , Middle French soubtileté , soubtilleté , subtilleté , subtillité ) acuteness of thought or intellect, skill, dexterity, stratagem (all 1119), complexity, intricacy (end of the 12th cent.), narrowness, thinness of consistency (a1260 or earlier in Anglo-Norman; c1347 in continental Middle French), cunning, especially of a treacherous or underhand nature, trickery (end of the 13th cent. or earlier), subtle argument (14th cent. or earlier; < classical Latin subtīlitāt- , subtīlitās subtility n.), and partly (ii) < subtle adj. + -ty suffix1. Compare Old Occitan subtilitat (14th cent.), Catalan subtilitat (14th cent.), Spanish sutilidad (c1250 as †subtilidat ; also †subtilidad ), Portuguese sutilidade (15th cent. as †sotildade and †sotilidade ; also (now rare) subtilidade (1652)), Italian (now rare) sottilità (first half of the 13th cent.); also ( < French) Dutch subtiliteit (1571 as †subtiliteyt ), German Subtilität (15th cent. as subtilitet ), Swedish subtilitet (1586). Compare later subtility n., subtilty n.In β. forms remodelled after classical Latin subtīlitās; compare subtle adj., and see discussion at that entry. the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > [noun] > skill or adroitness the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [noun] > deep or subtle α. c1300 St. Thomas Apostle (Laud) l. 163 in C. Horstmann (1887) 381 Þe kyng of is sotilte bi-gan sum-del a-grise, And seide, ‘certus, ich ȝiue þe pris of þe beste Carpenter.’ c1400 tr. Aelred of Rievaulx (Vernon) (1984) 49 (MED) Gadere to-gydere wit al suttilte þilke holsum dropys of blood þat droppeþ doun of his wondes. c1480 (a1400) SS. Simon & Jude 271 in W. M. Metcalfe (1896) I. 216 A kyste þat wrocht is all with costlyke wark & sutelte. c1540 (?a1400) 8395 Miche soteltie, for-sothe, settyng of notes, Crafte þat was coynt, knawyng of tymes. c1580 ( tr. (1925) I. i. l. 969 Throw sutelte Lyons of gold war set thair thre. the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > unintelligibility > depth, obscurity > [noun] the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > unintelligibility > depth, obscurity > [noun] > instance of a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 15 (MED) Nouȝt sotilte of sentence [L. sententiae subtilitas], noþer faire florischynge of wordes, but swetnesse of deuocion of þe matire schal regne in þis book. a1425 (?a1350) (Galba) (1907) l. 48 (MED) I wil þat ȝe teche him euyn Þe sutelte of sience seuyn. c1450 (?c1408) J. Lydgate (1901) l. 1700 [The god Mercury] doth habounde In sotyltes ful profounde..Which exceden in werching Al[le] mannys knowleching. c1485 ( G. Hay (1993) xv. 82 Yat a woman coude consaue sik suteltee of naturale science. 1535 Wisd. viii. 8 She knoweth ye sotilties of wordes, & can expounde darke sentences. 1591 F. Sparry tr. C. de Cattan A 4 The..suttletie of this Science. 1615 H. Crooke vi. 426 Thus much shall be sufficient to haue beene saide concerning the vitall parts belonging to the middle Region called the Chest, with all the Controuersies and subtleties of Nature therto appertaining. 1666 W. Austin 27 He was bred up to keep accounts, or know The subtlety of weavers art. 1712 H. Curzon II. 156 Such is the infinite Subtlety and immense Depth of this admirable Art [sc. geometry], that it dares contend even with Nature it self. 1768 E. Wynne IV. i. 11 The reason why algebra deserves to be so much commended as the great art of extending our enquiries,..seems to be from the variety and subtlety of its operations. 1820 W. Hazlitt 17 Religious controversy sharpens the understanding by the subtlety and remoteness of the topics it discusses. 1890 12 Apr. 251/3 The subtlety of the subject-matter greatly exceeds the subtlety of human logic. 1907 5 Mar. 6/7 The case was of an entrancing subtlety;..and every newspaper ‘led’ upon the result. 1971 9 Dec. 84/2 Understanding the subtleties of immunity. 2001 E. Jenkins in F. Bevilacqua et al. 155 More than enough has now been written to expose the subtlety and complexity of scientific ideas and their frequent divorce from common-sense understanding. 3. the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [noun] > a wile or cunning device the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [noun] > contrivance or machination α. a1393 J. Gower (Fairf.) v. l. 2138 Nou herkne the soutilete. c1400 in J. P. Genet (1977) 18 (MED) Þus ben rewmys distroyed by soteltees of Sathanas. ?c1430 (c1383) J. Wyclif (1880) 20 Bi false procurynge of matrymonye bi soteltees and queyntese. a1475 (Sloane) (1862) 5 Anoþer sotelté I wylle telle. Take harpe strynges made of bowel [etc.]. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour (Adv.) iii. 611 Bot giff we fynd sum sutelte, Ourtane all sone sall we be. ?1542 H. Brinkelow vii. sig. C1 How many gyles and suttylteys be there, to auoyde and escape the seruyng of the kyngs wrytt. 1671 J. Milton 56 Liable to fall By weakest suttleties . View more context for this quotation the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > cunning > [noun] α. c1400 (Rawl. B. 171) 260 (MED) Þe Quene Isabel þrouȝ conietting and sotelte of þe Mortymer, Lete ordein a parlement at Salesbury. ?a1430 T. Hoccleve Mother of God l. 46 in (1970) i. 53 Lest our fo, the feend, thurgh his sotiltee..Me ouercome with his treecherie. c1485 ( G. Hay (2005) 16 To wirk with suteltee of ypocrisy. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour (Adv.) i. 172 Throuch gret sutelte and ghyle,..He was arestyt syne and tane. 1526 Matt. xxvi. f. xxxvijv The chefe prestes..heelde a counsell, howe they mygt take Iesus by suttelte, and kyll him. 1577 J. Grange sig. Giv She turned him for his suttlety in stealyng the same into a wylie Foxe. c1600 (?c1395) (Trin. Cambr. R.3.15) (1873) l. 56 Ȝet seyn they [sc. the Carmelites] in here sutilte to sottes in townes, Þei comen out of Carmeli Crist for to followen. 1667 J. Milton ix. 93 In the wilie Snake, Whatever sleights none would suspicious mark, As from his wit and native suttletie Proceeding. View more context for this quotation 4. the world > matter > constitution of matter > lack of density > [noun] a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. xi. i. 566 By sotilte of his substaunce and þennes eyr is clere and bryȝt. ?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac (Hunterian) f. 49v (MED) Þe vtilite off þe multitude of þe tunykels of þe yȝen is for þre skilles and of þe gretenes of hem þat ben grete and off þe sotilte off hem þat ben sotile. a1500 (a1450) tr. (Ashm. 396) (1977) 111 (MED) Of shuldres..Sklendernesse and sotelte of them declareth debilite of hert. 1580 H. Gifford f. 25v Some by little & litle he would restore to their former estate, & vnderstanding, by the temperature & suttlety of ye ayre. 1666 R. Boyle 289 We had Occasion to take notice of the insinuating subtlety of the Air. 1691 J. Ray 69 The subtlety, activity, and penetrancy of its effluvia. 1749 D. Hartley i. i. §1. 24 Admitting the Existence and Subtlety of the Aether. 1779 S. Johnson Cowley in I. 45 Subtlety..in its original import means exility of particles. 1855 D. Brewster (new ed.) I. vi. 146 I will suppose ether to consist of parts differing from one another in subtlety by indefinite degrees. 1893 R. S. Ball 120 Such is the wondrous subtlety of the ethereal fluid. 1921 23 Apr. 130/1 It may vary in its transformations from extreme subtlety to a density as hard as steel. the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > ornamental or ornamented dish > [noun] a1425 (a1399) Forme of Cury (BL Add.) Pref. in C. B. Hieatt & S. Butler (1985) 20 It techiþ for to make curious potages & meetes and sotiltees. ?c1425 Recipe in (Arun. 334) (1790) 450 A soteltee: Seint-Jorge on horsebak and sleynge the dragun. 1452 in T. Wright & J. O. Halliwell (1845) I. 88 A sutteltee, the bore hed..Brawne and mustarde..Frutour lumbert, A suteltee. 1517 R. Torkington (1884) 7 They mad vs goodly Chere wt Diverse Sotylties as Comfytes and Marche Panys. 1768 H. Walpole 6 June (1840) V. 203 I am no culinary antiquary: the Bishop of Carlisle, who is, I have often heard talk of a sotelte [printed sotelle], as an ancient dish. 1783 Aug. 673/2 The dishes..were brought up fourteen in number, besides the subtleties. 1866 C. M. Yonge Cameos lxxviii, in July 10 The feast was entirely of fish; but they were of many kinds, and were adorned in the quaintest fashions, with sotilties, or subtleties. 1991 S. K. Penman (1992) xxiii. 330 Another trumpet flourish called attention to the subtlety that ended the course. the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > discernment, discrimination > [noun] α. a1425 (a1400) (Galba & Harl.) (1863) l. 5903 (MED) Gudes of grace may þir be, Mynde, and witte, and sutilte. c1450 (?a1400) (Ashm.) l. 258 Þare enhabetis..Þe wisest wees in þis werd... And if I say it my-selfe, slik sotellte I haue. a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. (Rawl.) (1898) 134 (heading) (MED) What aualyth Sotilte of vndyrstondynge and connynge. a1538 T. Starkey (1989) 78 Ther ys no thyng so true & manyfest, but the suttylyte of mannys reson may devyse somethyng to say contrary. 6. the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > discernment, discrimination > [noun] > subtle point a1425 N. Homily Legendary (Harl. suppl.) in C. Horstmann (1881) 2nd Ser. 149 All þir resons þat þou here sese War my sophims and sotiltese. a1500 (?c1378) J. Wyclif (1880) 428 (MED) Þus men of scole trauelen veynly for to gete newe sutiltees & to magnefie þer name. 1555 H. Latimer Let. in J. Foxe (1563) 1327/1 I knowe youre schoole subtleties as well as you. 1654 J. Bramhall ii. 28 That prefers not a subtlety or an imaginary truth before the bond of peace. a1680 S. Butler (1759) II. 486 They that are curious in Subtleties, and ignorant in things of solid Knowledge. 1761 L. Sterne IV. xxix. 190 My father delighted in subtleties of this kind. 1776 A. Smith II. v. i. 354 Subtleties and sophisms..composed the whole of this cobweb science of Ontology, which was likewise sometimes called Metaphysics. View more context for this quotation 1837 W. Whewell I. 249 The..unprofitable subtleties of the schools. 1876 E. A. Freeman V. xxiv. 369 [He] held that land as a plain matter of fact, and without any legal subtleties, as a personal gift from King William. 1903 1 413 By ingenious subtleties to bring within the grasp of the tax something which was not intended. 1968 E. F. Rice in P. O. Kristeller & P. P. Wiener vii. 175 He had only contempt for the disputes of Realists and Nominalists, the subtleties of Terminist logic, [etc.]. 2004 D. N. Walton iii. 61 The cases cited by Damer..involve a subtlety. the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > discernment, discrimination > [noun] > delicacy of a1450 (?1419–20) Friar Daw's Reply (Digby) l. 279 in P. L. Heyworth (1968) 81 (MED) Iak, þou shewist sikirli, what scole þou hast ben inne; Of sutiltee of arguyng me þinkiþ þi brayn ful þinne. 1670 H. Stubbe 13 That Subtlety of reasoning and distinguishing continues amongst our Adversaries. 1759 Nov. 427 The attentive and judicious..will find great subtlety and strength of reasoning in Plato's manner of expressing himself. 1857 C. D. Cleveland 344 His political pamphlets, though deficient in candor, display considerable subtlety in point of argument. 1903 J. Morley I. i. i. 4 The microscopic subtlety of a thirteenth century schoolman. 2000 P. Millican in A. Hastings et al. 500/2 More recent types of ontological argument lack the subtlety of Anselm's original. 7. the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > discernment, discrimination > [noun] > delicacy of 1728 E. Chambers at Finesse Among us, 'tis chiefly used to denote that peculiar kind of Fineness, Delicacy, or Subtlety perceived in Works of the Mind. 1768 L. Sterne I. 175 There are certain combined looks of simple subtlety..they are communicated and caught so instantaneously, that you can scarce say which party is the infecter. 1853 J. Ruskin I. App. xii. 393 By its perfect governableness it [sc. oil-colour] permits the utmost possible fulness and subtlety in the harmonies of colour. 1879 A. C. Swinburne (1880) 7 The delicate and infinite subtleties of change and growth discernible in the spirit and the speech of the greatest among poets. 1897 J. Conrad v. 96 We understood the subtlety of his fear..as though we had been over-civilized, and rotten, and without any knowledge of the meaning of life. 1902 XXV. 140/1 Kongoese..possesses the qualities of precision, flexibility, and subtlety of expression. 1948 6 Nov. 48 Completely lacking in style and vocal range, [the] gal shouted lyrics, losing any chance of putting over tunes with required finesse or subtlety. 1978 (Nexis) 5 Feb. 34 As for the pasta, your best choice depends on whether you like bite or subtlety. 2005 Aug. 23/1 They've..spent the past decade preaching subtlety over radical, balls-out styling fantasies. the world > action or operation > difficulty > types of difficulty > [noun] > difficulty or delicacy the world > action or operation > difficulty > types of difficulty > [noun] > difficulty or complexity 1815 J. Elliotson tr. J. F. Blumenbach xii. 88 The subtlety of the oscillations [L. subtilissimas..esse oportet..oscillationes] (if such exist) of the nerves or the nervous fluid. 1888 Nov. 108 Every one knows the immense superiority in delicacy and subtlety of the movements performed by the fingers..as compared with the movements of the arms or legs. 1960 Mar. 133/1 Dressage..aims at outstanding achievement in balance, coordination, and subtlety of horse movement. 1981 (Nexis) 25 June b10 They are demanding, complex dance moves, requiring timing, cooperative effort, and physical subtlety. 2002 R. Cohen i. iv. 72 This grip afforded a new subtlety of movement that forced hilts to become smaller and more manageable. the world > action or operation > ability > skill or skilfulness > [noun] > skill in managing or directing > artful management in dealing with others 1903 Aug. 45/2 He was a man of the greatest candor and frankness, but he possessed extraordinary tact and subtlety. 1910 C. N. Williamson & A. M. Williamson (1911) xxxix. 375 He had come to feel that it had been but a stroke of diplomacy on her part, and he valued her more than ever for her subtlety. 1958 J. Barth ii. 24 I appreciated the subtlety with which Morgan had precluded any protest on my part by prefacing his reproof with a dinner invitation. 1995 L. M. Bourgault iii. 58 When my colleague, not noted for his subtlety, could stand the discussion no longer, he finally blurted out a diatribe. 2011 (Nexis) Dec. 6 To present this in such a way is downright disrespectful. A little subtlety and discretion would have been welcome. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022). <  n.c1300 |
