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tactile

adjective

tac·tileˈtak-tᵊl How to pronounce tactile (audio)

-ˌtī(-ə)l

Synonyms oftactile next

:perceptible by touch:tangible

:of, relating to, or being the sense of touch

tactilely

ˈtak-tə-lē How to pronounce tactile (audio)

-ˌtī(-ə)l-lē

adverb

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Reach Out and Touch the Meaning ofTactile

Tactile has many relatives in English, from the oft-synonymoustangible to familiar words likeintact,tact,tangent,contingent, and evenentire. All of these can be traced back to the Latin verbtangere, meaning “to touch.”Tactile was adopted by English speakers in the early 1600s (possibly by way of the Frenchtactile) from the Latin adjectivetactilis (“tangible”). In light oftactile havingtangere for atouchstone, its dual senses of “perceptible by touch” and “of, relating to, or being the sense of touch” are perfectly sensible. Since the advent of film, television, and, ahem,touchscreens, a new sense also appears to be developing, astactile is increasingly used to suggest that something visual is particularly evocative or suggestive of a certain texture.

Examples oftactile in a Sentence

He not only had visual difficulties buttactile ones, too—witness his grasping his wife's head and mistaking it for a hat …—

Oliver Sacks,New Yorker,7 Oct. 2002

There is atactile and therefore somatic dimension to stroking the chalk that keeps the artist in constant, responsible and responsive touch with his emerging creation.—

Jed Perl,New Republic,17 June 2002

The keyboard has goodtactile feedback, and the touch pad is responsive without being too twitchy.—

Bruce Brown,PC Magazine,20 Feb. 2001

… nothing prepared me for thetactile reality of the original volumes, leaf after carefully written leaf over which his hand had travelled …—

Edmund Morris,New Yorker,16 Jan. 1995

Near midday the heat of the sun bounced up from the bare patches of soil to hit with an almosttactile force.—

Edward O. Wilson,Smithsonian,October 1984

The thick brushstrokes give the painting atactile quality.

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage.Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.Send us feedback.

With virtual reality, physical games andtactilegames to name a few, the Play Playground is Chuck-E-Cheese for adults, equipped with a full bar.—

Alfred Konuwa,Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025Swinging around New York City always felt great, and the web-slinging combat wastactile, splashy, and full of neat physics tricks.—

Luke Winkie,Vulture, 1 Apr. 2025But Meow Wolf management is keenly aware that some guests may feel overwhelmed by the sights, sounds andtactilesensations.—

Tiney Ricciardi,Denver Post, 27 Mar. 2025However, their density can make a keypress feel slightly more crisp and immediate compared to a standard keycap, especially on a lightertactileswitch.—

Henri Robbins,WIRED, 24 Mar. 2025See All Example Sentences fortactile