Words / D / General

deftness

noun/ˈdɛftnəs/

C1CEFR level
55/100Rarity: uncommon
NeutralRegister

Neat, quick and assured skill in movement or action.

He filleted the fish with a deftness that came only from years behind the counter.

Similar: dexterity, adroitness, nimbleness

Origin: From Old English gedæfte 'gentle, apt' + -ness.

Topic: dexterity in General English

Rarity runs from 0 (a word everyone knows) to 100 (almost never seen outside specialist or literary writing). Level is the word's real difficulty on the CEFR scale, from A1 to C2.

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More general words: dexterity