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De - Pt| English Dictionary: daintier | by the DICT Development Group |
| 1 result for daintier | |
| From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: | |
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Dainty \Dain"ty\, a. [Compar. {Daintier}; superl. {Daintiest}.] 1. Rare; valuable; costly. [Obs.] Full many a deynt[82] horse had he in stable. --Chaucer. Note: Hence the proverb [bd]dainty maketh dearth,[b8] i. e., rarity makes a thing dear or precious. 2. Delicious to the palate; toothsome. Dainty bits Make rich the ribs. --Shak. 3. Nice; delicate; elegant, in form, manner, or breeding; well-formed; neat; tender. Those dainty limbs which nature lent For gentle usage and soft delicacy. --Milton. I would be the girdle. About her dainty, dainty waist. --Tennyson. 4. Requiring dainties. Hence: Overnice; hard to please; fastidious; squeamish; scrupulous; ceremonious. Thew were a fine and dainty people. --Bacon. And let us not be dainty of leave-taking, But shift away. --Shak. {To make dainty}, to assume or affect delicacy or fastidiousness. [Obs.] Ah ha, my mistresses! which of you all Will now deny to dance? She that makes dainty, She, I'll swear, hath corns. --Shak. | |
