subtle: [14] Latin subtīlis, the ultimate source of English subtle, seems to have originated as a weaving term. It probably goes back ultimately to the phrase sub tēla ‘beneath the lengthwise threads in a loom’ (tēla, source of English toilet and toils, was a contraction of *texla, a relative of English textile). As this was lexicalized via *subtēlis to subtīlis, it developed the meaning ‘finely woven’, which subsequently broadened out to ‘fine, thin’. By the time it reached English, via Old French sutil, it had evolved further, to ‘making fine discriminations’. => textile, toilet
subtle (adj.)
c. 1300 (mid-13c. as a surname), sotil, "penetrating; ingenious; refined" (of the mind); "sophisticated, intricate, abstruse" (of arguments), from Old French sotil, soutil, subtil "adept, adroit; cunning, wise; detailed; well-crafted" (12c., Modern French subtil), from Latin subtilis "fine, thin, delicate, finely woven;" figuratively "precise, exact, accurate," in taste or judgment, "fine, keen," of style, "plain, simple, direct," from sub "under" (see sub-) + -tilis, from tela "web, net, warp of a fabric" (see texture (n.)).
From early 14c. in reference to things, "of thin consistency;" in reference to craftsmen, "cunning, skilled, clever;" Depreciative sense "insidious, treacherously cunning; deceitful" is from mid-14c. Material senses of "not dense or viscous, light; pure; delicate, thin, slender; fine, consisting of small particles" are from late 14c. sotil wares were goods sold in powdered form or finely ground. Partially re-Latinized in spelling, and also by confusion with subtile.
实用例句
1. I even began to exploit him in subtle ways.
我甚至开始巧妙地利用他。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Some of the designs are subtle, some gloriously OTT.
有些设计含蓄精妙，有些夸张绚丽。
来自柯林斯例句
3. The tactics employed can range from overt bullying to subtle emotional blackmail.
从公然威吓到微妙的情感胁迫，各种战术都用上了。
来自柯林斯例句
4. Young haricot beans have a tender texture and a delicate, subtle flavour.
