Both Uses of
tact
in
A Prayer for Owen Meany
- And Simon rather tactlessly, but innocently, added: "Who would have thought he could hit a ball hard enough?"†
p. 140.3 *tactlessly = in an offensive mannerstandard suffix: The suffix "-lessly" in tactlessly means in a manner that is without. This is the same pattern you see in words like harmlessly, fearlessly, and remorselessly.
- He was very good at that part of it—very respectful of grief, very tactful (while at the same time he managed to be very specific).†
p. 443.6tactful = to say or handle things in a way that makes others feel good about them
Definition:
the ability or act of saying or handling things in such a way that others feel good about them