finesse

“Where even, contradicting ideas held together at the same time is often just interesting, at the very least, and then you can sort of finesse interesting into funny, at a certain point.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

You can imagine the ripples of the cloth and the true expansiveness of the landscape, because Christo employed illusionistic effects with great finesse.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

Against Cape Verde, Spain lacked finesse in their passing.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

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

People tried to defy orders and merge themselves into the functional lines, but without any of the finesse that I would have brought to the endeavor.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

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

After two diamond finesses, declarer’s diamond ace dropped East’s king.

From New York Times ● Aug. 15, 2014

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

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

While Cooper scraped together the tiny budget from his own money, with help from family, and finessed Levy’s cooperation, Burke promised him they could shoot the film in a week.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2025

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

In bright, airy studios in London and Malibu, they finessed what would become Lipa’s most ambitious — and euphoric-sounding — record to date.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 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

And there are some feelings about this show’s return that no amount of script finessing can alter.

From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026

He won the bid on the basis of completing the project in three days but then spent three months finessing the terms of the contract before subcontracting the job.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026

So it’s a pleasure to report that actor-turned-filmmaker Matthew Shear, with his debut feature “Fantasy Life,” shows a facility for finessing a meal that lands the last bite.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026

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 truth is, Pope practised on this, as on other occasions, a little finessing, which is the chief foible in his character.

From Biographical Essays by Thomas De Quincey