DAINTY

dainty, exquisite

(adjective) delicately beautiful; “a dainty teacup”; “an exquisite cameo”

dainty, nice, overnice, prissy, squeamish

(adjective) excessively fastidious and easily disgusted; “too nice about his food to take to camp cooking”; “so squeamish he would only touch the toilet handle with his elbow”

dainty

(adjective) especially pleasing to the taste; “a dainty dish to set before a kind”

dainty, delicacy, goody, kickshaw, treat

(noun) something considered choice to eat

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Noun

dainty (plural dainties)

(obsolete) Esteem, honour.

A delicacy.

(Canada, Prairies and northwestern Ontario) A fancy cookie, pastry, or square, typically homemade, served at a social event (usually plural).

(obsolete) An affectionate term of address.

Adjective

dainty (comparative daintier, superlative daintiest)

(obsolete) Excellent; valuable, fine.

Elegant; delicately small and pretty.

Fastidious and fussy, especially when eating.

Synonyms

• neat

• petite

Source: Wiktionary

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Dain"ty, n.; pl. Dainties. Etym: [OE. deinie, dainte, deintie, deyntee, OF. deintié delicacy, orig., dignity, honor, fr. L. dignitas, fr. dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Dignity.]

1. Value; estimation; the gratification or pleasure taken in anything. [Obs.] I ne told no deyntee of her love. Chaucer.

2. That which is delicious or delicate; a delicacy. That precious nectar may the taste renew Of Eden's dainties, by our parents lost. Beau. & Fl.

3. A term of fondness. [Poetic] B. Jonson.

Syn.

– Dainty, Delicacy. These words are here compared as denoting articles of food. The term delicacy as applied to a nice article of any kind, and hence to articles of food which are particularly attractive. Dainty is stronger, and denotes some exquisite article of cookery. A hotel may be provided with all the delicacies of the season, and its table richly covered with dainties. These delicacies I mean of taste, sight, smell, herbs, fruits, and flowers, Walks and the melody of birds. Milton. [A table] furnished plenteously with bread, And dainties, remnants of the last regale. Cowper.

Dain"ty, a. [Compar. Daintier; superl. Daintiest.]

1. Rare; valuable; costly. [Obs.] Full many a deynté horse had he in stable. Chaucer.

Note: Hence the proverb "dainty maketh dearth," i. e., rarity makes a thing dear or precious.

2. Delicious to the palate; toothsome. Dainty bits Make rich the ribs. Shak.

3. Nice; delicate;elegant, in form, manner, or breeding; well-formed; neat; tender. Those dainty limbs which nature lent For gentle usage and soft delicacy. Milton. Iwould be the girdle. About her dainty, dainty waist. Tennyson.

4. Requirinig daintles. Hence; Overnice; hard to please; fastidious; sqrupulous; ceremonious. Thew were a fine and Dainty people. Bacon. And let us not be dainty of leave taking, But shift away. Shak. To make dainty, to assume or affect delicacy or fastidiousness. [Obs.] Ah ha, my mistresses! which of you all Will now deny to dance She that makes dainty, She, I'll swear, hath corns. Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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