finesse

The center, to the chagrin of many in the NBA, has long been known more for his finesse touch shots than physical play.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 27, 2026

But what he might lack in rhetorical finesse, he more than has in job experience, as least as defined by Trump.

From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2026

In the second cast, Christine Shevchenko fell far short of Ms. Teuscher’s finesse, but she essayed the opening “Preghiera” movement with more of its requisite lilt and shimmer than Ms. Teuscher did.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

"Top drawer. Changed the game for them. A winger that wants to beat his man and deliver with a mix of speed and finesse," said ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand.

From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2026

I felt the moment was right to run a finesse play and leave them so they could have a fullblown talk about it, if just for the time I was off in the bathroom.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

Soft and supple, it finesses the line between elegance and heft.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 8, 2021

The computers say the mate is now forced but there are a couple of amazing finesses along the way.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 5, 2019

Grant attempts two tricky maneuvers with “Harpoon” and, for the most part, finesses them both.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2019

The chef, Jason Aldous, forages and then finesses hyper-fresh ingredients — fiddlehead ferns, ramps, organic duck eggs, local oysters — into dishes that highlight the crisp brine of the waters and earthiness of the terroir.

From New York Times ● Jun. 23, 2017

Hoagland would say that now was the time for playing certain finesses, that in the wake of the activity arose those moments that could be manipulated.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

He suffers from the two facts that he achieved unique fame for the surgery named for him and he didn’t strike out hitters, he finessed them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

Berkshire does own about $60 billion of Apple stock, but that issue likely could be finessed to get Cook.

From Barron's ● Apr. 24, 2026

But Rutte appears to have finessed an issue that had threatened to shatter the north Atlantic alliance.

From BBC ● Jan. 21, 2026

It’s a mammalian innovation, honed and finessed in the latter stages of the Mesozoic era, the so-called Age of Reptiles.

From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2024

UC Berkeley’s medical school would not get over its disdain for John’s studies for years, until the situation was finessed by the creation of a separate laboratory for radiation science in 1942.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

They’ve tested concepts on stage that haven’t worked; sometimes comedians themselves have realized their act needs more finessing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 15, 2025

With enough time and imagination, kickers and equipment managers are capable of finessing footballs in ways that make them soar.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2025

The outreach requires finessing complex legal and diplomatic disputes that have long poisoned ties, but, as the court cases demonstrated, history hangs heavy over the relationship.

From Washington Times ● Dec. 22, 2023

There is no leveraging, cajoling, or finessing the calculations of thrust, the pressure inside the cryogenic tanks, or the behavior of a 165-foot-long spaceship attempting a rocket-powered landing.

From National Geographic ● Nov. 18, 2023

He played with me, openly and ostentatiously, like a skilful matador finessing round an infuriated bull.

From Leaves in the Wind by A. G. (Alfred George) Gardiner