Adjacent Words

Intelligent definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

INTEL'LIGENT, a. [L. intelligens.]
1. Endowed with the faculty of understanding or reason. Man is an intelligent being.
2. Knowing; understanding; well informed; skilled; as an intelligent officer; an intelligent young man; an intelligent architect; sometimes followed by of; as intelligent of seasons.
3. Giving information. [Not used nor proper.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: having the capacity for thought and reason especially to a high degree; "is there intelligent life in the universe?"; "an intelligent question" [ant: stupid, unintelligent]
2: possessing sound knowledge; "well-informed readers" [syn: intelligent, well-informed]
3: exercising or showing good judgment; "healthy scepticism"; "a healthy fear of rattlesnakes"; "the healthy attitude of French laws"; "healthy relations between labor and management"; "an intelligent solution"; "a sound approach to the problem"; "sound advice"; "no sound explanation for his decision" [syn: healthy, intelligent, levelheaded, level-headed, sound]
4: endowed with the capacity to reason [syn: intelligent, reasoning, thinking]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Latin intelligent-, intelligens, present participle of intelligere, intellegere to understand, from inter- + legere to gather, select — more at legend Date: 1509 1. a. having or indicating a high or satisfactory degree of intelligence and mental capacity b. revealing or reflecting good judgment or sound thought ; skillful 2. a. possessing intelligence b. guided or directed by intellect ; rational 3. a. guided or controlled by a computer; especially using a built-in microprocessor for automatic operation, for processing of data, or for achieving greater versatility — compare dumb 7 b. able to produce printed material from digital signals <an intelligent copier> • intelligential adjective • intelligently adverb Synonyms: intelligent, clever, alert, quick-witted mean mentally keen or quick. intelligent stresses success in coping with new situations and solving problems <an intelligent person could assemble it fast>. clever implies native ability or aptness and sometimes suggests a lack of more substantial qualities <clever with words>. alert stresses quickness in perceiving and understanding <alert to new technology>. quick-witted implies promptness in finding answers in debate or in devising expedients in moments of danger or challenge <no match for his quick-witted opponent>.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. 1 having or showing intelligence, esp. of a high level. 2 quick of mind; clever. 3 a (of a device or machine) able to vary its behaviour in response to varying situations and requirements and past experience. b (esp. of a computer terminal) having its own data-processing capability; incorporating a microprocessor (opp. DUMB). Derivatives: intelligently adv. Etymology: L intelligere intellect- understand (as INTER-, legere gather, pick out, read)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Intelligent In*tel"li*gent, a. [L. intelligens, intellegens, -entis, p. pr. of intelligere, intellegere, to perceive; inter between + legere to gather, collect, choose: cf. F. intelligent. See Legend.] 1. Endowed with the faculty of understanding or reason; as, man is an intelligent being. 2. Possessed of intelligence, education, or judgment; knowing; sensible; skilled; marked by intelligence; as, an intelligent young man; an intelligent architect; an intelligent answer. 3. Gognizant; aware; communicate. [Obs.] Intelligent of seasons. --Milton. Which are to France the spies and speculations Intelligent of our state. --Shak. Syn: Sensible; understanding. See Sensible.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. A person or animal that is intelligent has the ability to think, understand, and learn things quickly and well. Susan's a very bright and intelligent woman who knows her own mind. ADJ • intelligently They are incapable of thinking intelligently about politics. ADV: ADV with v, ADV adj 2. Something that is intelligent has the ability to think and understand instead of doing things automatically or by instinct. An intelligent computer will be an indispensable diagnostic tool for doctors. ADJ

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Instructed, enlightened, well-informed. 2. Astute, acute, quick, alert, knowing, clever, bright, apt, shrewd, discerning, clear-sighted, keen-sighted, quick-sighted, sharp-sighted, sharp-witted, keen-eyed, long-headed, clear-headed.

Moby Thesaurus

acute, adroit, alert, all-knowing, apperceptive, appercipient, apprehending, apprehensive, apt, astute, au fait, aware, brainy, bright, brilliant, canny, cerebral, clever, cognizant, comprehending, conceptive, conceptual, conscious, consequent, cunning, discerning, discursive, docile, educable, endopsychic, enlightened, erudite, facile, formable, gifted, ideational, impressionable, ingenious, insightful, instructable, intellectual, internal, keen, knowing, knowledgeable, logical, malleable, mental, mindful, moldable, motivated, noetic, noological, not so dumb, omniscient, perceptive, percipient, perspicacious, phrenic, plastic, pliable, prehensile, psychic, psychologic, quick, quick-witted, rational, ready, reasonable, reasoning, receptive, ripe for instruction, sagacious, sage, sane, savvy, schoolable, sensible, sharp, shrewd, smart, sophic, sound, spiritual, strong-minded, subjective, susceptible, teachable, thinking, thirsty for knowledge, trainable, understanding, willing, wise