subtil

Concepts

subtle

delicate

fine

sensitive

subtile

nice

pernicious

sharp

shrewd

slim

sophisticated

acute

subtil

dainty

elusive

insidious

low-key

Synonyms

fin

🔚

délicat

ingénieux

insidieux

malsain

nuisible

dangereux

sensible

délétère

Translations

sutil

sottile

subtil

subtiel

sutil

subtil

spitsvondig

subtil

subtil

arguto

acuto

spitzfindig

tenuis

feinsinnig

Pronounced as (IPA)

/syp.til/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French: subtil

Inherited from Old French: subtil

In summary

From Middle French subtil, from Old French subtil (13th c.), byform of sotil (12th c.), itself inherited from Latin subtīlis. Old French subtil may still represent the inherited form if it stands for the pronunciation /su.til/. The modern /y/ is of semi-learned origin. The b probably came to be pronounced even later; Middle French variant spellings like sutil, suttil suggest that it was still mostly silent.