dexterous

English

Alternative forms

• dextrous (British)

Etymology

From Latin dexter (“right, ready”) +‎ -ous. Displaced native Old English handcræftiġ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈdɛkstɹəs/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛkstɹəs

Adjective

dexterous (comparative more dexterous, superlative most dexterous)

1. Skillful with one's hands.
   • 1960, John Updike, 'Rabbit, Run', page 57:

     She is pleasingly dexterous with the chopsticks, and keeps one hand lying palm up on her lap. Pinched with just the right pressure between the sticks; funny how plump women have that delicate touch.

2. Skillful in some specific thing.
   • 1719 May 6 (Gregorian calendar), [Daniel Defoe], The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, […], 3rd edition, London: […] W[illiam] Taylor […], published 1719, →OCLC:

     We went frequently out with this boat a-fishing; and as I was most dexterous to catch fish for him, he never went without me.

3. Agile; flexible; able to move fluidly and gracefully.
4. (figurative, archaic) Skilled at argumentation; mentally skillful.
   • 1775, speech by Edmund Burke

     […] the study [of law] renders men acute, inquisitive, dexterous, prompt in attack, ready in defense […]

Related terms

• ambidextrous
• dexter
• dexterity

Translations

skillful with one's hands

• Belarusian: спры́тны (sprýtny), зру́чны (zrúčny), уме́лы (be) (umjély)
• Bulgarian: сръчен (bg) (srǎčen), умел (bg) (umel)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 機巧／机巧 (zh) (jīqiǎo), 靈巧／灵巧 (zh) (língqiǎo)

• Czech: zručný, šikovný (cs)
• Danish: behændig (da)
• Dutch: handig (nl), behendig (nl)
• Esperanto: manlerta
• Finnish: kätevä (fi), näppärä (fi), kätevä käsistään
• French: adroit (fr), habile (fr)
• Galician: hábil
• Georgian: მარჯვე (marǯve), მოხერხებული (moxerxebuli), დახელოვნებული (daxelovnebuli), გაწაფული (gac̣apuli), ოსტატური (osṭaṭuri)
• German: behänd (de), geschickt (de), fingerfertig
• Hindi: दस्तकार (hi) (dastakār)
• Italian: destro (it), abile (it), ingegnoso (it)
• Japanese: 器用な (ja) (きような, kiyō na)
• Latvian: veikls
• Macedonian: спретен (spreten), умешен (umešen)
• Manx: aghtal
• Maori: haratau
• Mapudungun: trüf
• Old English: handcræftiġ
• Polish: zręczny (pl), umiejętny (pl)
• Portuguese: hábil/habilidoso (com as mãos)
• Romanian: abil (ro), îndemânatic (ro)
• Russian: ло́вкий (ru) (lóvkij), прово́рный (ru) (provórnyj), уме́лый (ru) (umélyj)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: вешт, вјешт

  Roman: vešt (sh), vješt (sh)

• Slovak: zručný, šikovný
• Spanish: diestro (es), hábil (es), habiloso (es)
• Swedish: händig (sv)
• Turkish: eli çabuk (tr)
• Ukrainian: спри́тний (sprýtnyj), згра́бний (zhrábnyj), умі́лий (umílyj)

skillful in some specific thing

• Bulgarian: ловък (bg) (lovǎk), сръчен (bg) (srǎčen), умел (bg) (umel), изкусен (bg) (izkusen), находчив (bg) (nahodčiv)
• Catalan: destre (ca)
• Crimean Tatar: çeber
• Dutch: handig (nl)
• Finnish: taitava (fi)
• Georgian: დახელოვნებული (daxelovnebuli), ოსტატური (osṭaṭuri), გაწაფული (gac̣apuli)
• German: geschickt (de), gewandt (de), tüchtig (de)
• Italian: abile (it), svelto (it)
• Latvian: veikls
• Macedonian: умешен (umešen), вешт (vešt)
• Manx: aghtal
• Polish: zręczny (pl), wprawny (pl)
• Portuguese: hábil (pt), habilidoso (pt)
• Romanian: abil (ro), descurcăreț (ro)
• Russian: уме́лый (ru) (umélyj), иску́сный (ru) (iskúsnyj)
• Slovak: šikovný
• Spanish: habilidoso (es), diestro (es), habiloso (es), hábil (es)
• Turkish: becerikli (tr), hünerli (tr), mahâhretli, mâhir (tr), mârifetli

agile; flexible

• Bulgarian: ловък (bg) (lovǎk)
• Czech: pružný (cs)
• Dutch: behendig (nl)
• Finnish: ketterä (fi), jäntevä
• Galician: áxil (gl)
• Georgian: მკვირცხლი (mḳvircxli), მარდი (mardi), მოძრავი (moʒravi), ცოცხალი (cocxali)
• German: agil (de), flexibel (de), flink (de), gewandt (de)
• Italian: agile (it), aggraziato (it)
• Latin: agilis, pernix
• Latvian: veikls, vingrs
• Polish: zręczny (pl), gibki (pl)
• Portuguese: ágil (pt)
• Russian: ло́вкий (ru) (lóvkij), ги́бкий (ru) (gíbkij)
• Serbo-Croatian: savitljiv (sh), felksibilan
• Slovak: ladný
• Spanish: diestro (es)
• Turkish: atik (tr), çevik (tr)

See also

• adroit
• active
• expert
• skillful
• clever
• able
• ready
• apt
• handy
• versed

Further reading

• “dexterous”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “dexterous”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “dexterous”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• Exoduster