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Today, I have another adjective for you: “subtle”. It is used to talk about something that is so slight that it is difficult to detect. For example:

There is the subtle taste of garlic in this stew.

There are a few differences between these two pictures, but they’re very subtle.

A: I’ll find out if Nancy has a boyfriend for you.

B: Ok, but don’t ask her directly.

A: Don’t worry. I’ll be subtle when I talk to her.

In the first example, the taste of garlic is not strong at all. The person knows it’s there, but the taste is quite weak. In the second example, the two pictures look the same, but there are very small differences so the person has to look at them carefully in order to see them. In the third example, the person means that he’ll find out the information in an indirect way.

It’s important to know the pronunciation of this word. Even though it is spelled with a “b”, it is pronounced like a “d”. Therefore, the pronunciation is /SUD dul/.