detail
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detail
- /ˈdiː.teɪl/ UK
- /ˈdi.teɪl/ US
- /dɪˈteɪl/ US, also
- /dɪˈteɪl/ UK
- /dɪˈteɪl/ US
Rhymes with -iːteɪl, -eɪl
Where it comes from
Borrowed from Middle French détail, from Old French detail, from detaillier, from de- + taillier (“to cut”).
Compare typologically Bulgarian подробност (podrobnost), Czech podrobnost, Russian подро́бность (podróbnostʹ) (akin to дроби́ть (drobítʹ)).
noun details
-
A part small enough to escape casual notice.
Note this fine detail in the lower left corner.
Similar: minutia, technicality, trifle, triviality
- A profusion of details. This etching is full of fine detail.
- The small parts that can escape casual notice. Attention to detail was said to be one of the secrets of Gerrard's success as a player.
- A part considered trivial enough to ignore. I don't concern myself with the details of accounting.
- A person's name, address and other personal information. The arresting officer asked the suspect for his details.
-
A temporary unit or assignment.
Frequently members of the small police detail dispatched to the scene joined in.
Similar: contingent, detachment
- An individual feature, fact, or other item, considered separately from the whole of which it is a part. WikiLeaks did not cause these uprisings but it certainly informed them. The dispatches revealed details of corruption and kleptocracy that many Tunisians suspected, but could not prove, and would cite as they took to the streets. They also exposed the blatant discrepancy between the west's professed
- A narrative which relates minute points; an account which dwells on particulars. "I could never persuade myself to confide in him that event which was so often present to my recollection, but which I feared the detail to another would only impress more deeply."
- A selected portion of a painting. On the cover of Julia Kristeva's Black Sun: Depression and Melancholia is a detail from a painting by Hans Holbein the Younger, “Portrait of the Artist's Wife, Elizabeth Binzenstock, and Her Two Children, Philip and Catherine.”
verb details · detailing · detailed
-
To explain in detail.
I'll detail the exact procedure to you later.
Similar: specify
- To clean carefully (particularly of road vehicles, always pronounced /ˈdiːteɪl/) We need to have the minivan detailed.
- To assign to a particular task. Two years after England’s World Cup victory, Stiles was at Wembley again to help Manchester United become the first English team to win the European Cup final. Again Eusébio was one of his opponents, playing for Benfica, and again Stiles was detailed to keep him quiet. […]
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: particular, point, contingent, item, partial, nuance, background, rigour, exhaustively, particularity, verbosity, elaborate, depth, verbose, thorough, individual
Translations
Every language
noun part small enough to escape casual notice
| Español | detalle |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 상세 sangse, 세부 sebu, 명세 myeongse |
| 日本語 | 詳細 shōsai, 細部 saibu, 明細 meisai |
| 中文 | 細節 /细节 xìjié |
| हिन्दी | ब्योरा byorā |
| Português | detalhe, pormenor |
| Français | détail |
| Deutsch | Detail, Einzelheit |
| Italiano | dettaglio, particolare |
| Ελληνικά | λεπτομέρεια leptoméreia |
| Română | detaliu, amănunt |
| Русский | дета́ль detálʹ, подро́бность podróbnostʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | chi tiết |
| العربية | تَفْصِيل tafṣīl, تَفَاصِيل tafāṣīl |
| עברית | פְּרָט prat |
noun uncountable: a profusion of details
| Español | detalle |
|---|---|
| Português | detalhe |
| Français | détails |
| Deutsch | Detail |
| Русский | дета́ль detálʹ |
noun part considered trivial enough to ignore
| Español | detalle |
|---|---|
| Português | detalhe, minúcias, pormenor |
| Français | détail |
| Deutsch | Detail |
| Italiano | minuzia |
| Русский | дета́ль detálʹ, подро́бность podróbnostʹ, то́нкость tónkostʹ |
| עברית | פְּרָט prat |
noun plural: personal information
| Português | identificação |
|---|---|
| Français | coordonnées |
| Ελληνικά | δεδομένα dedoména, στοιχεία stoicheía |
| עברית | פרטים pratim |
noun military: temporary unit
| Español | destacamento |
|---|---|
| Português | destacamento |
| Français | détachement |
| Русский | наря́д narjád, расчёт rasčót |
verb to explain in detail
| Español | detallar, pormenorizar, puntualizar |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 詳細に説明する shōsai ni setsumei suru |
| Português | detalhar, minuciar, esmiuçar, esquadrinhar |
| Français | détailler |
| Deutsch | detaillisieren, detaillieren |
| Italiano | dettagliare |
| العربية | فَصَّلَ faṣṣala |
verb US: to clean carefully (particularly a car)
| Русский | отдра́ивать otdráivatʹ |
|---|
verb military: to assign to a particular task
| Русский | отряди́ть otrjadítʹ |
|---|
Talk about this word "detail." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/detail. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. detail. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/detail "detail." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/detail.Cite this
@misc{detail_2026,
title = {detail},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/detail},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
