from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Detail \De"tail\ (d[=e]"t[=a]l or d[-e]*t[=a]l"; 277), n. [F.
d['e]tail, fr. d['e]tailler to cut in pieces, tell in detail;
pref. d['e]- (L. de or dis-) + tailler to cut. See {Tailor}.]
1. A minute portion; one of the small parts; a particular; an
item; -- used chiefly in the plural; as, the details of a
scheme or transaction.
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The details of the campaign in Italy. --Motley.
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2. A narrative which relates minute points; an account which
dwells on particulars.
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3. (Mil.) The selection for a particular service of a person
or a body of men; hence, the person or the body of men so
selected.
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4. (Arch. & Mach.)
(a) A minor part, as, in a building, the cornice, caps of
the buttresses, capitals of the columns, etc., or
(called {larger details}) a porch, a gable with its
windows, a pavilion, or an attached tower.
(b) A detail drawing.
{Detail drawing}, a drawing of the full size, or on a large
scale, of some part of a building, machine, etc.
{In detail}, in subdivisions; part by part; item by item;
circumstantially; with particularity.
Syn: Account; relation; narrative; recital; explanation;
narration.
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