1
as in negotiating
to plan out usually with subtle skill or care
had to finesse the schedule a bit to fit in another patient that afternoon
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in avoiding
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery
tried to finesse the blame for the foreign policy fiasco, even though he was secretary of state at the time
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of finessing
This being Nantucket, the team contended with stringent zoning regulations governing building footprints, rooflines, and window heights; finessing the layout felt like expert-level Tetris.
—
David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 8 Apr. 2026
Trump has a rare and underestimated talent for finessing these internal fissures.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 12 Jan. 2026
This picks up any holding with both an honor and the nine onside, which outweighs the alternative play of finessing the 10.
—Deb Harvell, Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2025
The race to dominate the humanoid robotics market is as much about harvesting 3D data as finessing the nuts and bolts.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
But no amount of finessing the Beetle—the automotive equivalent of a Birkenstock sandal—would turn VW’s ugly duckling into a swan.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 26 Sep. 2025
In traditional builds, this allows your PCI Express cards to be inserted straight down into the slot, rather than tilting the card and finessing its bracket through a rear-panel hole.
—PC Magazine, 14 Sep. 2025
But respect to Doja for finessing the fine points.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
David Foxley, Architectural Digest, 8 Apr. 2026
Trump has a rare and underestimated talent for finessing these internal fissures.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 12 Jan. 2026
This picks up any holding with both an honor and the nine onside, which outweighs the alternative play of finessing the 10.
—Deb Harvell, Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2025
The race to dominate the humanoid robotics market is as much about harvesting 3D data as finessing the nuts and bolts.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 9 Oct. 2025
But no amount of finessing the Beetle—the automotive equivalent of a Birkenstock sandal—would turn VW’s ugly duckling into a swan.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 26 Sep. 2025
In traditional builds, this allows your PCI Express cards to be inserted straight down into the slot, rather than tilting the card and finessing its bracket through a rear-panel hole.
—PC Magazine, 14 Sep. 2025
But respect to Doja for finessing the fine points.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finessing
Verb
-
No need to worry about repairs, staging, open houses and negotiating.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
1 May 2026
-
As a city that is always negotiating with modernity, the tradition of jol khabar remains a comforting anchor, binding generations to their cultural roots and evoking nostalgia.—
Madhushree Basu Roy,
Saveur,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Holland's not quite sure why so many in his generation are avoiding alcohol.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
-
Nia has no interest at all in talking to them or even a strategy for avoiding them.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
This can involve pretending to be an IT customer support and manipulating an employee at a target company into handing over internal access.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
24 Apr. 2026
-
But even then, our team of artists got in there and just started manipulating things.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Jones faces charges for property theft, money laundering and evading arrest, the release stated.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Poole was arrested by the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office Fugitive Unit on May 31, 2024, after spending months evading law enforcement.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Clerk-Treasurer Corinne Peffers was also authorized to contact the Barnes & Thornburg law firm as counsel in arranging for a general obligation bond to finance the purchase.—
Jim Woods,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Grab a wide and shallow bowl, place a floral frog inside, and start arranging the tulip stems in an organic way.—
Maria Sabella,
Better Homes & Gardens,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Together, these mechanisms prevent the battery’s active materials from degrading or from escaping across the membrane, thereby ensuring long-term stability.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Prosecutors have charged the 26-year-old Talley with murder, attempted murder and escaping from police, among other charges.—
Caroline Kubzansky,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
After expressing sorrow for having put innocent people in danger by transporting weaponry and plotting to commit an act of violence in a public place, Allen’s letter lays out his list of targets.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
27 Apr. 2026
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But the show’s plotting and Niall’s exquisite complexity more than make up for Ruben’s relative flatness.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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These teams are growing fiber from bacteria, engineering cotton that comes out of the ground in color and creating silk like fibers from compost.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
27 Apr. 2026
-
The development solves the long-standing issues of material degradation and leakage (crossover) by re-engineering the iron complex at the molecular level.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Finessing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finessing. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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