ex|qui|site

ex|qui|site «EHKS kwih ziht, ehk SKWIHZ iht», adjective, noun.

–adj.

1. very lovely; delicate; beautifully made: »

Those violets are exquisite flowers.

SYNONYM(S): dainty, fine, beautiful. See syn. under delicate. (Cf. ↑delicate)

2. sharp; intense: »

exquisite joy. A toothache causes exquisite pain. Chiggers, called red bugs down South, cause the most exquisite itching (Science News Letter).

SYNONYM(S): acute, keen.

3. of highest excellence; most admirable: »

She has exquisite taste and manners. In German he was an exquisite stylist, and he brought to that language a new sensitivity in the art of storytelling (Time).

4. keenly sensitive: »

an exquisite ear for music.

5. Obsolete. carefully chosen or devised: »

I have no exquisite reason for't, but I have reason good enough (Shakespeare).

–n.

a person (usually a man) who is too fastidious in dress; dandy; fop.

╂[< Latin exquīsītus, past participle of exquīrere < ex- out + quaerere seek]