feine

Feine is the inflected form of the German adjective fein, meaning "fine," "delicate," or "refined." It is used to describe high quality, subtlety, or refinement in objects, materials, tastes, sounds, and experiences, as well as in metaphorical expressions.

Grammatical note: feine is the feminine singular form used before feminine nouns in the nominative and accusative cases, for example eine feine Blume or die feine Musik. It also appears in plural contexts with appropriate declension, such as feine Stoffe or die feinen Stoffe. The adjective agrees with the noun in gender, number, and case, and its ending changes accordingly in different determinations and sentence roles.

Origin and cognates: The word derives from the German adjective fein, which has cognates in other West Germanic languages, such as Dutch fijn and English fine. In German, fein covers a range of nuances from “fine” in a neutral sense to “delicately refined” or “very good,” depending on context and emphasis.

Usage and nuance: In everyday language, feine often conveys positive evaluation of quality, taste, or subtlety rather than literal physical fineness. It can be used descriptively or idiomatically, for example in phrases like eine feine Sache (a fine matter) or eine feine Idee (a clever idea). The term is common in shopping, design, cuisine, and cultural descriptions, where it signals polish, sophistication, or refined characteristics.