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“nuance”
1. A very slight difference in meaning, feeling, tone, or color: The nuances in Rebecca's tone of voice while talking about her late husband conveyed a feeling of gloom and melancholy.
2. The use or awareness of subtle shades of meaning or feeling; especially, with references to artistic expressions or performances: The pianist performed the pieces with complete mastery of all of the nuances of the tones in the music.
3. A subtle deviation in meanings, opinions, or attitudes; hence, a slight degree of perceivable variations in anything apparent to the mind: The contrasts in the appearances of the twin boys was only detectable if given close attention; since there were only very slight nuances in details that revealed their individualities.
4. Etymology: from French nuance, "slight difference, shade of color" (so called with reference to the dissimilar colors of the clouds); from nuer, "to shade"; from nue, "cloud", from Gallo-Romance nuba; from Latin nubes, "cloud"; related to obnubere, "to veil".
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2. The use or awareness of subtle shades of meaning or feeling; especially, with references to artistic expressions or performances: The pianist performed the pieces with complete mastery of all of the nuances of the tones in the music.
3. A subtle deviation in meanings, opinions, or attitudes; hence, a slight degree of perceivable variations in anything apparent to the mind: The contrasts in the appearances of the twin boys was only detectable if given close attention; since there were only very slight nuances in details that revealed their individualities.
4. Etymology: from French nuance, "slight difference, shade of color" (so called with reference to the dissimilar colors of the clouds); from nuer, "to shade"; from nue, "cloud", from Gallo-Romance nuba; from Latin nubes, "cloud"; related to obnubere, "to veil".
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This entry is located in the following units:
-ance, -ancy
(page 8)
nubi-, nub-
(page 1)
post-
(page 1)
nuance, nuisance
nuance (NOO ans", NYOO ans") (noun)
A subtle or slight degree of difference, as in meaning, feeling, or tone; a gradation: The story that Eric told had very little depth and nuance.
A nuance is a shade of awareness or intent, a subtle variation, as when a poem expresses different nuances of sentiments.
nuisance (NOO suhns, NYOO suhns) (noun)
Someone or something that is inconvenient, annoying, or vexatious; a bother: Having to stand so long in line to get on an airplane is a real nuisance.
That noisy disruptive child was always a big nuisance when his mother took him shopping with her.
It is such a nuisance having to explain the nuance of a story to the listener who does not understand Celtic mythology.
This entry is located in the following unit:
Confusing Words Clarified: Group N; Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Synonyms, Polysemes, etc. +
(page 1)
Word Entries at Get Words:
“nuance”
An insignificant or very slight difference in meanings, feelings, tones, or colors. (1)
This entry is located in the following unit:
Word a Day Revisited Index of Cartoons Illustrating the Meanings of Words
(page 56)