Intricate means having many small, detailed parts that fit together in a complicated but carefully arranged way. An intricate design, like a spider's web or a Swiss watch, contains countless tiny elements working together in a precise pattern.

Think about building a complex LEGO structure with hundreds of small pieces that must connect just right, or examining a snowflake under a microscope and seeing its delicate, branching patterns. That's intricate: detailed, elaborate, and requiring careful attention.

The word often describes things that took great skill or patience to create. An intricate puzzle has many pieces with subtle differences. An intricate plan involves many coordinated steps. A musician might play an intricate melody with rapid, complicated finger movements.

When something is intricate, you usually can't understand or appreciate it at a glance. You need to look closely, study the details, and see how everything connects. The opposite would be something simple or straightforward. An intricate problem takes careful thought to solve, while a simple problem has an obvious answer.

The noun form is intricacy: “The intricacy of the clockwork mechanism amazed everyone who saw inside.”