Definition: fine stuff

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Fine \Fine\, a. [Compar. Finer; superl. Finest.] [F. fin,
   LL. finus fine, pure, fr. L. finire to finish; cf. finitus,
   p. p., finished, completed (hence the sense accomplished,
   perfect.) See Finish, and cf. Finite.]
   1. Finished; brought to perfection; refined; hence, free from
      impurity; excellent; superior; elegant; worthy of
      admiration; accomplished; beautiful.

            The gain thereof [is better] than fine gold. --Prov.
                                                  iii. 14.

            A cup of wine that's brisk and fine.  --Shak.

            Not only the finest gentleman of his time, but one
            of the finest scholars.               --Felton.

            To soothe the sick bed of so fine a being [Keats].
                                                  --Leigh Hunt.

   2. Aiming at show or effect; loaded with ornament;
      overdressed or overdecorated; showy.

            He gratified them with occasional . . . fine
            writing.                              --M. Arnold.

   3. Nice; delicate; subtle; exquisite; artful; skillful;
      dexterous.

            The spider's touch, how exquisitely fine! --Pope.

            The nicest and most delicate touches of satire
            consist in fine raillery.             --Dryden.

            He has as fine a hand at picking a pocket as a
            woman.                                --T. Gray.

   4. Not coarse, gross, or heavy; as:
      (a) Not gross; subtile; thin; tenous.

                The eye standeth in the finer medium and the
                object in the grosser.            --Bacon.
      (b) Not coarse; comminuted; in small particles; as, fine
          sand or flour.
      (c) Not thick or heavy; slender; filmy; as, a fine thread.
      (d) Thin; attenuate; keen; as, a fine edge.
      (e) Made of fine materials; light; delicate; as, fine
          linen or silk.

   5. Having (such) a proportion of pure metal in its
      composition; as, coins nine tenths fine.

   6. (Used ironically.)

            Ye have made a fine hand, fellows.    --Shak.

   Note: Fine is often compounded with participles and
         adjectives, modifying them adverbially; a, fine-drawn,
         fine-featured, fine-grained, fine-spoken, fine-spun,
         etc.

   Fine arch (Glass Making), the smaller fritting furnace of a
      glasshouse. --Knight.

   Fine arts. See the Note under Art.

   Fine cut, fine cut tobacco; a kind of chewing tobacco cut
      up into shreds.

   Fine goods, woven fabrics of fine texture and quality.
      --McElrath.

   Fine stuff, lime, or a mixture of lime, plaster, etc., used
      as material for the finishing coat in plastering.

   To sail fine (Naut.), to sail as close to the wind as
      possible.

   Syn: Fine, Beautiful.

   Usage: When used as a word of praise, fine (being opposed to
          coarse) denotes no ``ordinary thing of its kind.'' It
          is not as strong as beautiful, in reference to the
          single attribute implied in the latter term; but when
          we speak of a fine woman, we include a greater variety
          of particulars, viz., all the qualities which become a
          woman, -- breeding, sentiment, tact, etc. The term is
          equally comprehensive when we speak of a fine garden,
          landscape, horse, poem, etc.; and, though applied to a
          great variety of objects, the word has still a very
          definite sense, denoting a high degree of
          characteristic excellence.