Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense details, present participle detailing, past tense, past participle detailedpronunciation note: The pronunciation (dɪteɪl) is also used in American English.
1. countable noun
The detailsof something are its individual features or elements.
The details of the plan are still being worked out. [+ of]
No details of the discussions have been given.
I recall every detail of the party.
Synonyms: point, fact, feature, particular More Synonyms of detail
2. plural noun [adjective NOUN]
Details about someone or something are facts or pieces of information about them.
See the bottom of this page for details of how to apply for this exciting offer. [+ of]
Full details will be announced soon.
3. countable noun [oft adjective NOUN]
A detail is a minor point or aspect of something, as opposed to the central ones.
Only minor details now remain to be settled.
Synonyms: fine point, part, particular, trifle More Synonyms of detail
4. uncountable noun
You can refer to the small features of something which are often not noticed as detail.
We like his attention to detail and his enthusiasm.
5. countable noun
A detail of a picture is a part of it that is printed separately and perhaps made bigger, so that smaller features can be clearly seen.
6. verb
If you detail things, you list them or give information about them.
The report detailed the human rights abuses committed during the war. [VERB noun]
[Also V how]
Synonyms: list, describe, relate, catalogue More Synonyms of detail
7. verb
If someone is detailedto do a task or job, they are officially ordered to do it.
[formal]
He detailed a constable to take it to the Incident Room. [VERB noun to-infinitive]
[Also V n to n]
Synonyms: appoint, name, choose, commission More Synonyms of detail
8.
See go into details
9.
See in detail
More Synonyms of detail
detail in British English
(ˈdiːteɪl)
noun
1.
an item or smaller part that is considered separately; particular
2.
an item or circumstance that is insignificant or unimportant
passengers' comfort was regarded as a detail
3.
treatment of or attention to items or particulars
this essay includes too much detail
4.
items collectively; particulars
5.
a small or accessory section or element in a painting, building, statue, etc, esp when considered in isolation
6. military
a.
the act of assigning personnel for a specific duty, esp a fatigue
b.
the personnel selected
c.
the duty or assignment
7. go into detail
8. in detail
verb(transitive)
9.
to list or relate fully
10. military
to select (personnel) for a specific duty
11.
to decorate or elaborate (carving, etc) with fine delicate drawing or designs
Word origin
C17: from French détail, from Old French detailler to cut in pieces, from de-dis-1 + tailler to cut; see tailor
detail in American English
(dɪˈteɪl; ˈdiˌteɪl)
noun
1.
the act of dealing with things item by item
the detail of business
2.
a minute account
to go into detail
3.
any of the small parts that go to make up something; item; particular
the details of a plan
4.
a.
any small secondary or accessory part or parts of a picture, statue, building, etc.
b.
a small segment as of a painting, reproduced separately for detailed study
5.
a.
one or more soldiers, sailors, etc. chosen for a particular task
b.
the task itself
verb transitive
6.
to give the particulars of; tell, item by item
7.
to choose for a particular task
detail a man for sentry duty
8. US
to clean (an automotive vehicle) inside and outside, with meticulous attention to details, usually for a fee
SIMILAR WORDS: ˈitem
Idioms:
in detail
Word origin
Fr détail < detailler, to cut up, tell in particulars < dé- (L de), from + tailler, to cut: see tailor
COBUILD Collocations
detail
architectural detail
bank details
biographical detail
check details
confidential detail
confirm details
contain details
credit card details
details are available
details are correct
finer details
full details
further details
gory detail
gruesome detail
historical detail
include details
intimate details
lurid details
meticulous detail
minor detail
minute detail
obtain details
payment details
period detail
post details
precise details
provide details
publish details
recall details
release details
remember details
reveal details
send details
sketchy details
specific details
technical details
tiny detail
Examples of 'detail' in a sentence
detail
The government has refused to give any details about the test or say why it failed.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
These are often used by hackers to harvest personal information or banking details.
Computing (2010)
The website provides pictures and details the history and architecture.
The Sun (2016)
It is difficult to be more specific without more detail.
The Sun (2016)
Her full contact details were listed.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
You can find the details of the individual charges by going to the website of the fund manager and downloading the annual accounts.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I do not want to go too much into detail on that because that can quickly be interpreted in the wrong way.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
A master of detail, she often stays up to read the documents in her red box until the early hours.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Photographs do not contain the detail that we often imagine they do.
Improve Your Landscape Painting
The investigation is ongoing and we cannot give more details at this stage.
The Sun (2011)
The picky little details are the individual brush strokes in our stewardship painting.
Christianity Today (2000)
He applied the same rigorous method and attention to detail to both aspects of his life.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The couple refused to go into further details about his alleged affair.
The Sun (2016)
The lower layers have the fine details of the skills.
Evans, Peter & Deehan, Geoff The Descent of Mind - the how and why of intelligence (1990)
There you will also find contact details and information about any restrictions at individual venues.
The Sun (2011)
Full details of the float will not emerge for two weeks.
The Sun (2013)
The app also provides details about local customs so soldiers can avoid inadvertently causing offence.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
This possibility will be explored in detail in the sections that follow.
Pressley, Michael & McCormick, Christine Advanced Educational Psychology For Educators, Researchers and Policymakers, (1995)
You are not working in anything like as much detail as when you are an executive.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
The wheelchair she relies on when she is out and about seems like a minor detail.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Just one is deemed good enough to have her picture and details taken.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Please go to our website for full details of how to lodge a complaint.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Get the booking form and full offer details online.
The Sun (2008)
They can also use the details as part of wider scams to steal identities.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
We will announce details of our plans shortly.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
They are working out all the details now.
The Sun (2006)
There were no details about how such a programme would look.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
See details of the full route online.
The Sun (2011)
You just have to stay close to the small human details.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
See the back page for full details.
The Sun (2016)
They also include far more detail about the circumstances and possible motives of the killings than the official statistics.
The Times Literary Supplement (2010)
Using details from the essay, explain why or why not.
Goshgarian, Gary Exploring language (6th edn) (1995)
In other languages
detail
British English: detail /ˈdiːteɪl/ NOUN
The details of something are its small, individual features or elements. If you examine or discuss something in detail, you examine all these features.
...the details of the agreement.
American English: detail
Arabic: تَفْصِيل
Brazilian Portuguese: detalhe
Chinese: 详情
Croatian: detalj
Czech: detail
Danish: detalje
Dutch: detail
European Spanish: detalle
Finnish: yksityiskohta
French: détail
German: Einzelheit
Greek: λεπτομέρεια
Italian: dettaglio
Japanese: 細部
Korean: 세부
Norwegian: detalj
Polish: szczegół
European Portuguese: detalhe
Romanian: detaliu
Russian: деталь
Latin American Spanish: detalle
Swedish: detalj
Thai: รายละเอียด
Turkish: ayrıntı
Ukrainian: деталь
Vietnamese: chi tiết
British English: detail VERB
If you detail things, you list them or give information about them.
The report detailed the human rights abuses committed during the war.
American English: detail
Brazilian Portuguese: detalhar
Chinese: 详细列举
European Spanish: detallar
French: énumérer
German: einzeln aufführen
Italian: dettagliare
Japanese: 詳述する
Korean: 열거하다
European Portuguese: detalhar
Latin American Spanish: detallar
All related terms of 'detail'
in detail
If you examine or discuss something in detail , you do it thoroughly and carefully.
detail man
a salesman for a pharmaceutical firm who visits doctors , dentists , etc. in a certain district to promote new drugs
gory detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
tiny detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
minor detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
minute detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
period detail
You can refer to the small features of something which are often not noticed as detail .
detail drawing
a separate large-scale drawing of a small part or section of a building, machine , etc
gruesome detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
go into detail
to include all or most particulars
historical detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
meticulous detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
architectural detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
biographical detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
confidential detail
The details of something are its individual features or elements.
detailer
a person who cares for ( polishes , repaints , cleans , etc) cars
to the last detail/to the last man
You use expressions such as to the last detail and to the last man to indicate that a plan , situation , or activity includes every single person, thing, or part involved.
Chinese translation of 'detail'
detail
(ˈdiːteɪl)
n
(c) (= individual feature, minor point) 细(細)节(節) (xìjié) (个(個), gè)
(u) (in picture, work etc) 细(細)节(節) (xìjié)
vt
(frm, = list) 详(詳)述 (xiángshù)
in detail详(詳)细(細)地 (xiángxì de)
to (not) go into details (usually negative) (没(沒)有)详(詳)细(細)叙(敘)述 ((méiyǒu) xiángxì xùshù)
Derived Forms
detailsn pl详(詳)情 (xiángqíng)
1 (noun)
Definition
an item that is considered separately
I recall every detail of the party.
Synonyms
point
The most interesting point about the village is its religion.
fact
The lorries always left in the dead of night when there were few witnesses around to record the fact.
feature
The gardens are a special feature of this property.
particular
The nurses at the admission desk asked for her particulars.
respect
He's simply wonderful in every respect.
factor
Physical activity is an important factor in maintaining fitness.
count
item
The other item on the agenda is the tour.
instance
element
one of the key elements of the UN's peace plan
aspect
Climate affects every aspect of our lives.
specific
component
Enriched uranium is a key component of nuclear weapons.
facet
technicality
2 (noun)
Definition
an item considered to be unimportant
Only minor details now remain to be settled.
Synonyms
fine point
part
particular
trifle
He doesn't let such trifles worry him.
technicality
nicety
We have dealt with all the legal niceties.
minutiae
triviality
He accused me of making a great fuss about trivialities.
unimportant point
matter of no importance or consequence
3 (noun)
Definition
personnel assigned a specific duty
His personal detail totalled sixty men.
Synonyms
party
a party of explorers
force
a pan-European peace-keeping force
body
unit
a secret military unit
troop
She was aware of a little troop of travellers watching them.
section
duty
squad
The club is under investigation by the fraud squad.
crew
The film crew spent nearly twelve weeks shooting in Thailand.
assignment
fatigue
detachment
a detachment of marines
1 (verb)
Definition
to list fully
The report detailed the changes that would be implemented.
Synonyms
list
The students were asked to list their favourite sports.
describe
We asked her to describe what she had seen.
relate
He was relating a story he had once heard.
catalogue
The Royal Greenwich Observatory was founded to observe and catalogue the stars.
portray
The novelist accurately portrays provincial domestic life.
specify
He has not specified what action he would like them to take.
depict
Children's books often depict animals as gentle creatures.
recount
He then recounted the story.
rehearse
Anticipate any tough questions and rehearse your answers.
recite
I simply recited the names of a number of Chinese cities I knew.
narrate
The film is a story about power, narrated by an old sailor.
delineate
The relationship between Church and State was delineated in a formal agreement.
enumerate
She enumerated all the reasons why she wanted to travel for a year.
itemize
a fully itemized phone bill
tabulate
Results for the test program haven't been tabulated yet.
particularize
Mr Johnson particularized the general points he wanted to make.
2 (verb)
Definition
to select (personnel) for a specific duty
He detailed someone to take it to the Incident Room.
Synonyms
appoint
It made sense to appoint a banker to this job.
name
The Scots have yet to name their team.
choose
I chose him to accompany me on my trip.
commission
You can commission them to paint something especially for you.
select
elect
The people have voted to elect a new president.
delegate
Officials have been delegated to start work on a settlement.
nominate
It is legally possible for an elderly person to nominate someone to act for them.
assign
Did you choose this country or were you simply assigned here?
allocate
charge
phrase
See in detail
Additional synonyms
in the sense of aspect
Definition
a distinct feature or element in a problem or situation
Climate affects every aspect of our lives.
Synonyms
feature,
point,
side,
factor,
angle,
characteristic,
facet
in the sense of assign
Definition
to select (someone) for a post or task
Did you choose this country or were you simply assigned here?
Synonyms
select for,
post,
commission,
elect,
appoint,
delegate,
nominate,
name,
designate,
choose for,
stipulate for
in the sense of catalogue
Definition
to enter (an item) in a catalogue
The Royal Greenwich Observatory was founded to observe and catalogue the stars.