deft
Quick and skilful, especially with your hands.
deft in a sentence
- With one deft flick of her wrist, the chef flipped the pancake perfectly.
- The weaver's deft fingers flew across the loom, quick and sure with every thread.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to deft?
- Askilful
- Bslow
- Cclumsy
- Dawkward
Show the answer
A: skilful. The other three mean the opposite of deft.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to deft?
- Aclumsy
- Bhandy
- Cskilful
- Dnimble
Show the answer
A: clumsy. The other three mean nearly the same as deft.
Words that mean something similar
skilful, nimble, handy
Words that mean the opposite
clumsy, awkward, slow
More words about movement & action
- demolish: To knock something down completely.
- descend: To go or climb down.
- devour: To eat something quickly and greedily.
- dexterous: Very skilful and quick with your hands.
- disperse: To scatter and go off in different directions.
- effortless: Done easily, without seeming to try hard at all.
- elevate: To lift something up to a higher position.
- elude: To cleverly escape from or avoid someone.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test