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Added 1 October 2026

detail

/ˈdiː.teɪl/ noun

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noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about detail at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

  1. A part small enough to escape casual notice.
    Note this fine detail in the lower left corner.
  2. A profusion of details.
    This etching is full of fine detail.
  3. The small parts that can escape casual notice.

verb

  1. To explain in detail.
    I'll detail the exact procedure to you later.
  2. To clean carefully
    We need to have the minivan detailed.
  3. To assign to a particular task.

Origin

Borrowed from Middle French détail, from Old French detail, from detaillier, from de- + taillier (“to cut”). Compare typologically Bulgarian подробност (podrobnost), Czech podrobnost, Russian подро́бность (podróbnostʹ) (akin to дроби́ть (drobítʹ)).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

Related Words: particularpointcontingentitempartialnuancebackgroundrigourexhaustivelyparticularityverbosityelaborate

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