subtilize
verbEtymology From French subtiliser; equivalent to subtle + -ize.
1
To make subtle; to make thin or fine; to make less gross or coarse.
2
To refine; to spin into niceties.
- to subtilize arguments
- Nor as yet have we subtilized ourselves into savages.1790 November, Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France, and on the Proceedings in Certain Societies in London Relative to that Event. […], London: […] J[ames] Dodsley, […], →OCLC:
3
To use subtle arguments or distinctions.
- Derived terms
- subtilizer