Definition of delicacy
- a. - The state or condition of being delicate; agreeableness
to the senses; delightfulness; as, delicacy of flavor, of odor, and the
like.
- a. - Nicety or fineness of form, texture, or constitution;
softness; elegance; smoothness; tenderness; and hence, frailty or
weakness; as, the delicacy of a fiber or a thread; delicacy of a hand
or of the human form; delicacy of the skin; delicacy of frame.
- a. - Nice propriety of manners or conduct; susceptibility or
tenderness of feeling; refinement; fastidiousness; and hence, in an
exaggerated sense, effeminacy; as, great delicacy of behavior; delicacy
in doing a kindness; delicacy of character that unfits for earnest
action.
- a. - Addiction to pleasure; luxury; daintiness; indulgence;
luxurious or voluptuous treatment.
- a. - Nice and refined perception and discrimination; critical
niceness; fastidious accuracy.
- a. - The state of being affected by slight causes;
sensitiveness; as, the delicacy of a chemist's balance.
- a. - That which is alluring, delicate, or refined; a luxury or
pleasure; something pleasant to the senses, especially to the sense of
taste; a dainty; as, delicacies of the table.
- a. - Pleasure; gratification; delight.