DIMENSIONS: DENOTATION / Quality
R E F E R E N C E S
3 Fine adj [ME fin, fr. OF, fr. L finis, n., end, limit] [13c] 1a: free from impurity b of a metal: having a stated proportion of pure metal in the composition expressed in parts per thousand [a gold coin .9166 __] 2a [1]: very thin in gauge or texture [__ thread] {2]: not coarse [__ sand] [3]: very small [__ print] [4]: Keen [a knife with a __ edge] [5]: very precise or accurate [a __ adjustment] [trying to be too __ with his pitches] b: physically trained or hardened close to the limit of efficiency -used of an athlete or animal 3: delicate, sublte, or sensitive in quality, perception, or discrimination [a __ distinction] 4: superior in kind, quality, or appearance: Excellent [a __ job] [a __ day] [__ wines] 5a: Ornate 1 [__ writing] b: marked by or affecting elegance or refinement [__ manners] 6a: very well [feel __] b: All Right [that's __ with me] 7 -used as an intensive [the leader, in a __ frenzy, beheaded one of his wives -Brian Crozier]
4 Fine adv [14c] 1: Finely: as a: very well b: All Right 2: with a very narrow margin of time or space [she had not intended to cut her escape so __ -Melinda Beck et al]
5 Fine vt [14c] 1: Purify, Clarify [__ and filter wine] 2: to make finer in quality or size -vi 1: to become pure or clear [the ale will __] 2: to become smaller in lines or proportions
Finely adv [14c]: in a fine manner: as a: extremely well: Excellently [plays the hero very __ -New Yorker] b: with close discrimination: Precisely c: with delicacy or subtlety: Sensitively [a leader __ attuned to the needs of the people] d: Minutely [__ ground meal]
[Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition. Springfield, MA, USA: Merriam-Webster, Inc. 1995.]
Copyright
The contents of this site, including all images and text, are for personal, educational, non-commercial use only. The contents of this site may not be reproduced in any form without proper reference to Text, Author, Publisher, and Date of Publication [and page #s when suitable].