nuance

Borrowed from French nuance (“nuance, shade, hue”). Several steps omitting from Latin nūbēs.

Compare typologically Italian sfumatura (< Latin fūmus).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈnjuː.ɑːns/
• (General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈnju.ɑns/, /ˈnuː.ɑns/

  • Audio (California):

    (file)

  • Audio (New Jersey):

    (file)

• (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈnjʉː.ɐːns/

  • Audio (Queensland):

    (file)

nuance (countable and uncountable, plural nuances)

2. (countable) A minor distinction.

   hidden nuances

4. Subtlety or fine detail.

   Understanding the basics is easy, but appreciating the nuances takes years.

   • 1901: Alpheus Spring Packard, Lamarck, the Founder of Evolution

     […] the richer our collections become, the more numerous are the proofs that all is more or less shaded (nuance), that the remarkable differences become obliterated […]

   • 2016, Tim Carvell [et al.], “Encryption”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 3, episode 5, John Oliver (actor), Warner Bros. Television, via HBO:

     It’s a miracle Lindsey Graham has met the concept of nuance. And this is the man who once warned “the world is literally about to blow up.” So you’re not dealing with someone who likes to dabble with grey areas.

• nuanced

nuance (third-person singular simple present nuances, present participle nuancing, simple past and past participle nuanced)

2. (transitive) To apply a nuance to; to change or redefine in a subtle way.

Borrowed from French nuance.

• IPA^(key): [ˈnuant͡sɛ]
• IPA^(key): [ˈnɪjant͡sɛ]
• Hyphenation: nuan‧ce

nuance f

1. nuance (minor distinction)

• “nuance”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “nuance”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

Borrowed from French nuance, from Middle French nuance, from Latin nūbēs.

• IPA^(key): /nyˈɑn.sə/, [nyˈɑ̃.sə]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑnsə
• Hyphenation: nu‧an‧ce

nuance f (plural nuances or nuancen, diminutive nuanceje n or nuancetje n)

1. nuance (minor distinction)
2. nuance (subtlety or fine detail)

• nuanceren

• Afrikaans: nuanse
• → Indonesian: nuansa

From nuer +‎ -ance.

• IPA^(key): /nɥɑ̃s/

• Audio (France):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑ̃s
• Hyphenation: nu‧ance

nuance f (plural nuances)

1. nuance:
   1. (minor distinction)
   2. (subtlety or fine detail)
2. gradation of colors
3. (music) dynamics

• “nuance”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

• nuança

Borrowed from French nuance.

• Hyphenation: nu‧an‧ce

nuance f (plural nuances)

1. gradation of colour
2. nuance:
   1. (minor distinction)
   2. (subtlety or fine detail)