Alternative forms
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Etymology
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From Latin dexter (“right, ready”) + -ous. Displaced native Old English handcræftiġ.
Pronunciation
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Adjective
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dexterous (comparative more dexterous, superlative most dexterous)
- Skillful with one's hands.
1960, John Updike, 'Rabbit, Run', page 57:She is pleasingly dexterous with the chopsticks, and keeps one hand lying palm up on her lap. Pinched with just the right pressure between the sticks; funny how plump women have that delicate touch.
- Skillful in some specific thing.
- Agile; flexible; able to move fluidly and gracefully.
- (figurative, archaic) Skilled at argumentation; mentally skillful.
- 1775, speech by Edmund Burke
- […] the study [of law] renders men acute, inquisitive, dexterous, prompt in attack, ready in defense […]
Related terms
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Translations
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skillful with one's hands
- Belarusian: спры́тны (sprýtny), зру́чны (zrúčny), уме́лы (be) (umjély)
- Bulgarian: сръчен (bg) (srǎčen), умел (bg) (umel)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 機巧／机巧 (zh) (jīqiǎo), 靈巧／灵巧 (zh) (língqiǎo)
- Czech: zručný, šikovný (cs)
- Danish: behændig (da)
- Dutch: handig (nl), behendig (nl)
- Esperanto: manlerta
- Finnish: kätevä (fi), näppärä (fi), kätevä käsistään
- French: adroit (fr), habile (fr)
- Galician: hábil
- Georgian: მარჯვე (marǯve), მოხერხებული (moxerxebuli), დახელოვნებული (daxelovnebuli), გაწაფული (gac̣apuli), ოსტატური (osṭaṭuri)
- German: behänd (de), geschickt (de), fingerfertig
- Hindi: दस्तकार (hi) (dastakār)
- Italian: destro (it), abile (it), ingegnoso (it)
- Japanese: 器用な (ja) (きような, kiyō na)
- Latvian: veikls
- Macedonian: спретен (spreten), умешен (umešen)
- Manx: aghtal
- Maori: haratau
- Mapudungun: trüf
- Old English: handcræftiġ
- Polish: zręczny (pl), umiejętny (pl)
- Portuguese: hábil/habilidoso (com as mãos)
- Romanian: abil (ro), îndemânatic (ro)
- Russian: ло́вкий (ru) (lóvkij), прово́рный (ru) (provórnyj), уме́лый (ru) (umélyj)
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: вешт, вјешт
- Roman: vešt (sh), vješt (sh)
- Slovak: zručný, šikovný
- Spanish: diestro (es), hábil (es), habiloso (es)
- Swedish: händig (sv)
- Turkish: eli çabuk (tr)
- Ukrainian: спри́тний (sprýtnyj), згра́бний (zhrábnyj), умі́лий (umílyj)
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skillful in some specific thing
- Bulgarian: ловък (bg) (lovǎk), сръчен (bg) (srǎčen), умел (bg) (umel), изкусен (bg) (izkusen), находчив (bg) (nahodčiv)
- Catalan: destre (ca)
- Crimean Tatar: çeber
- Dutch: handig (nl)
- Finnish: taitava (fi)
- Georgian: დახელოვნებული (daxelovnebuli), ოსტატური (osṭaṭuri), გაწაფული (gac̣apuli)
- German: geschickt (de), gewandt (de), tüchtig (de)
- Italian: abile (it), svelto (it)
- Latvian: veikls
- Macedonian: умешен (umešen), вешт (vešt)
- Manx: aghtal
- Polish: zręczny (pl), wprawny (pl)
- Portuguese: hábil (pt), habilidoso (pt)
- Romanian: abil (ro), descurcăreț (ro)
- Russian: уме́лый (ru) (umélyj), иску́сный (ru) (iskúsnyj)
- Slovak: šikovný
- Spanish: habilidoso (es), diestro (es), habiloso (es), hábil (es)
- Turkish: becerikli (tr), hünerli (tr), mahâhretli, mâhir (tr), mârifetli
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agile; flexible
- Bulgarian: ловък (bg) (lovǎk)
- Czech: pružný (cs)
- Dutch: behendig (nl)
- Finnish: ketterä (fi), jäntevä
- Galician: áxil (gl)
- Georgian: მკვირცხლი (mḳvircxli), მარდი (mardi), მოძრავი (moʒravi), ცოცხალი (cocxali)
- German: agil (de), flexibel (de), flink (de), gewandt (de)
- Italian: agile (it), aggraziato (it)
- Latin: agilis, pernix
- Latvian: veikls, vingrs
- Polish: zręczny (pl), gibki (pl)
- Portuguese: ágil (pt)
- Russian: ло́вкий (ru) (lóvkij), ги́бкий (ru) (gíbkij)
- Serbo-Croatian: savitljiv (sh), felksibilan
- Slovak: ladný
- Spanish: diestro (es)
- Turkish: atik (tr), çevik (tr)
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See also
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Further reading
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- “dexterous”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “dexterous”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “dexterous”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
Anagrams
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