exquisite en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
- /ɪkˈskwɪzɪt/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ˈɛkskwɪzɪt/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
From Latin exquīsītus (“to be outsought”), perfect passive participle of exquīrō (“to outseek”).
Meanings
-
Especially or extraordinarily fine or pleasing; exceptional.
They sell good coffee and pastries, but their chocolate is exquisite.
For us the bee gathers, from the leaves of flowers, that exquisite honey destined for our use. For us the ox is put to the plough, and desires no other reward than a little food. It is also for us that the forests, the fields, and the gardens, abound in riches; the greatest part of which would be lost, if they were not of use to us. For us also are designed the treasures the mountains contain. It is true, that we have, beyond comparison, more wants than the brute creation ; but we have also, many more faculties, talents, and industry, to make every thing around us serve for our use and pleasure. Millions of creatures contribute towards our food, clothes, and habitations, and furnish us with innumerable conveniences and enjoyments.
1800, Christoph Christian Sturm, Reflections for Every Day in the Year on the Works of God, and of His Providence Throughout all Nature, D. Schaw and Company, page 77:Selwyn, sitting up rumpled and cross-legged on the floor, after having boloed Drina to everybody's exquisite satisfaction, looked around at the sudden rustle of skirts to catch a glimpse of a vanishing figure—a glimmer of ruddy hair and the white curve of a youthful face, half-buried in a muff.
1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter I, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:From Area B I'd usually [...] do the whole thing in reverse, until I'd qualified for the reward of a bacon sandwich and a cup of exquisite milky coffee at a transport café in Bartley Green Village.
1983, Bill Oddie, Gone Birding, London: Methuen, page 51:YINGKO – This small township in the southwest of Taipei county is not known for its beautiful scenery or historic relics. Yet every week it attracts hundreds of visitors. They all come to appreciate the exquisite pottery made in the town, for Yingko is the ceramics capital of Taiwan.
1983 February 5, “Yingko -- Taiwan's ceramics capital”, in Arab News, volume VIII, number 69, Saudi Arabia, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 18, column 4:Sourav Ganguly scored an exquisite century in his debut Test match.
- (obsolete) Carefully adjusted; precise; accurate; exact.
- Recherché; far-fetched; abstruse.
- Of special beauty or rare excellence.
-
Exceeding; extreme; keen, in a bad or a good sense.
exquisite pain or pleasure
-
Of delicate perception or close and accurate discrimination; not easy to satisfy; exact; fastidious.
his books of Oriental languages, wherein he was exquisite
1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […], London: […] Iohn Williams […], →OCLC, (please specify |book=I to XI):exquisite judgment, taste, or discernment
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most exquisite | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more exquisite | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic |
Deriveds
exquisiteness · overexquisite · superexquisite · exquisitely · exquisite corpse
Synonyms
perfect · discriminating · beautiful · delicate
Translations (61)
nl voortreffelijk (of special beauty or rare excellence) · sv utomordentlig (especially fine) · eo eskvizita (exceeding, extreme) · bg изискан (especially fine) · nl uitstekend (especially fine) · sv enastående (especially fine) · da raffineret (especially fine) · fro delicatif (especially fine) · nb utsøkt (especially fine) · fr exquis (especially fine) · mi turua (especially fine) · pt excelente (especially fine) · hu nagyszerű (especially fine) · pl wyśmienity (especially fine) · ru изы́сканный (especially fine) · ru изя́щный (especially fine) · pt distinto (of special beauty or rare excellence) · it squisito (especially fine) · io bonega (especially fine) · eo ravega (especially fine) · fi loistava (of delicate perception) · ja 絶妙 (especially fine) · hu kitűnő (especially fine) · fi tarkka (obsolete: carefully adjusted) · de köstlich (especially fine) · pt excepcional (especially fine) · da intens (exceeding, extreme) · pt esmerado (especially fine) · nl voortreffelijk (especially fine) · es exquisito (especially fine) · fi erinomainen (especially fine) · pl wyborny (especially fine) · mi turua (of special beauty or rare excellence) · de exquisit (especially fine) · ca exquisit (especially fine) · de auserlesen (especially fine) · da udsøgt (especially fine) · es bonísimo (especially fine) · ru редкостный (of special beauty or rare excellence) · sv noggrann (obsolete: carefully adjusted) · pt primoroso (especially fine) · sv exceptionell (especially fine) · nl exquise (especially fine) · eo delikata (especially fine) · hu pompás (especially fine) · sv noggrant (obsolete: carefully adjusted) · el υπέροχος (especially fine) · da fortræffelig (especially fine) · ru чрезвычайный (exceeding, extreme) · fa فوقالعاده (especially fine) · it delizioso (especially fine) · da heftig (exceeding, extreme) · cmn 精緻 /精致 (especially fine) · fi kaukaa haettu (recherché) · fi suurenmoinen (of special beauty or rare excellence) · sv fin (of special beauty or rare excellence) · ckb نایاب (especially fine) · el εξαίσιος (especially fine) · uk ви́шуканий (especially fine) · bg изящен (especially fine) · fi äärimmäinen (exceeding, extreme)