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intricate

intricate

73 6.7
Having many small parts or details that are hard to understand
  • adjective
  • /ˈɪntrɪkɪt/
translation icon : intrincado
  • She found the instructions for assembling the furniture to be intricate and hard to follow.
  • an intricate design
  • intricate details
  • intricate patterns

A handmade look at this intricate paper ornament.

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Examples

  • America's financial system is intricate and complex.

  • The mask was far more intricate than people thought.

  • Why are they so intricate and yet so different from each other?

  • And it's like this amazing intricate set list.

  • Yeah, so it's extremely intricate and ancient.

  • Look how intricate what I thought was simple turns out to be.

  • So I miss some of those very fine intricate details.

  • This is a very intricate process.

  • The boys look on as the two men paint an intricate design on the shafts.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • The garden side of the wall was inlaid with an intricate mosaic, nearly covered over by ivy.

    Fiction book (1993)

Synonyms

complicated
vsintricate
876 5.4

Difficult to understand or deal with because it has many connected parts

emphasizes the small detailed arrangement that makes it complex
complex
vsintricate
648 5.6

Not simple because it has many connected parts

adds that those parts are small and arranged in an elaborate way
detailed
vsintricate
353 3.7

Having many small parts or facts that you can see

is about how those small parts are arranged into a complex whole
sophisticated
vsintricate
279 6.8

A machine or system with many advanced parts and careful design

is similar but focuses on many small, complex parts rather than refinement
elaborate
vsintricate
179 4.9

Very detailed with many small parts or decorations

stresses the crafted small parts and their complex layout
convoluted
vsintricate
31 8.6

Very complicated and hard to follow, often not needed

is complex too but without the sense of needless confusion
involved
vsintricate
16 6.6

Complicated and hard to understand

focuses on many small parts arranged in a complex pattern
tangled
vsintricate
4 6.8

Very complicated and hard to follow, like rules or relationships

means complex in structure without implying trickery or deception
fiddly
vsintricate
  • UK
2 7.9

Hard to do because it has small, delicate parts

shares small part focus but is more about crafted complexity than awkwardness

Antonyms

1.0

Easy to understand or do

Something that is easy to understand and clear

27 4.2

Easy to see and understand

Compounds

A detailed, complex design that has many connected parts like leaves or flowers

A pattern with many small connected parts that looks very detailed

A detailed design cut into wood or stone that needs great skill

A piece like a painting or carving with many small, careful details

How Complex

ornate
  • Literature
26 7.0
elaborate
179 4.9
intricate
73 6.7
complex
648 5.6
detailed
353 3.7

Surface Forms

intricate positive
intricater comparative
intricatest superlative

Etymology

Intricate comes from old Latin parts in- 'in' and trica 'tangle', so it originally meant something caught up or 'entangled'. That's why intricate now describes things with many small, connected parts and is often 'complicated'.