Exquisite
adjective /ɪkˈskwɪzɪt/ — Exceptionally fine, with a beauty that demands attention.
Definition
Extremely beautiful and delicate; carefully made with intense detail and precision.
Beyond the definition
Exquisite is reserved for things that stop you — a piece of jewelry, a line of poetry, a perfectly constructed sentence. It implies not just beauty but craft. The kind of thing you want to hold still and look at longer.
Origin & history
From Latin exquisitus — carefully sought out (ex- 'out' + quaerere 'to seek'). Something searched for and found.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The embroidery was exquisite — each stitch placed as if the whole depended on it.
She had an exquisite ear for language, catching nuance that others missed entirely.
The pain was, in its own way, exquisite — precise and impossible to ignore.
Synonyms
sublime, superb, magnificent, consummate, exquisite
Antonyms
crude, coarse, ordinary
Related words
Exquisite vs delicate
Exquisite implies an intense, refined beauty that demands attention due to its superior quality. Delicate focuses on fragility and fineness, suggesting something easily broken or subtle.
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Close-up of musician's fingers
A close-up shows a musician’s fingers dancing across violin strings, catching the slight tension and blurred motion of the performance.
The intense detail, precision, and focus of the hands demonstrate the careful, beautiful craftsmanship required to produce such a virtuosic result, capturing a quality of extreme, delicate beauty.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated conceptual illustration