Dexterous

Dexterous

Dictionary Definition - mentally adroit and skillful : done with dexterity : skillful and competent with the hands. Adjective

Sentence Definition - When someone is more dexterous than another this means they are more skillful, mainly involving hands.

Sentence Examples -

1. There aren't many modern jazz pianists more dexterous than Mr. Rosenthal.

2. A dexterous debater, Mr. Downs was elected president of the Carleton Student Association at the end of his junior year.

3. The author's juggling of truth and fiction is almost as dexterous as his hero's.

Original Sentence -

She could not bend the last two fingers on her left hand, and the other would never again be dexterous.

Other Forms

1. Dexterously

2. Dexterousness

3. Dexterity

Prefix: Dexter - relating to or situated on the right

Suffix: Ous - having. Possessing the qualities of

Etymology

Language of Origin - Latin

Original Word - the word comes from the Latin word Dextr, which means on the right side, skillful.

Date used in Modern English - Early 17th Century

Etymology - Dexterous comes from the Latin word dexter, meaning "on the right side." Since most people are right-handed, and therefore do things more easily with their right hand, dexter developed the sense of skillfulness. English speakers crafted dexterous from dexter and have been using the resulting adjective for anyone who is skillful-in either a physical or mental capacity-since at least the early 1600s. The adjective ambidextrous, which combines dexter with the Latin prefix ambi-, meaning "both," describes one who is able to use both hands in an equally skillful way. Over time, the word Dexterous was at its maximum height of being used between 1800 and 1850. Starting around 1880 and 1900 is when the word's popularity began to decline. And today, sadly the word is being used less and less every year.

Etymology Sentence - The word dexterous comes from dexter, which means on the right side, therefore when I think of my right side, I think of my good and more skillful hand, just like the definition of dexterous states.