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Acuity is sharpness or clearness of vision, hearing, or thought.
Acumen is the ability to make quick decisions and keen, precise judgments.
Someone who is adroit is skillful and clever, especially in thought, behavior, or action.
If you describe something as ambiguous, you mean that it is unclear or confusing because it can be understood in multiple ways.
Someone’s aptitude at a skill is their natural ability to perform it well; this word also refers to someone’s ability to learn something new or become better at a skill.
When you describe someone as astute, you think they quickly understand situations or behavior and use it to their advantage.
If you describe a system or process as byzantine, it means that you are criticizing it because it is excessively complicated and difficult to understand.
Something that is capacious has a lot of space and can contain a lot of things.
The word cerebral refers to the brain and/or its intellectual capability.
A cogent reason or argument is strong and convincing.
Cogitating about something is thinking deeply about it for a long time.
Cognitive describes those things related to judgment, memory, and other mental processes of knowing.
A conundrum is a problem or puzzle that is difficult or impossible to solve.
Something convoluted, such as a difficult concept or procedure, is complex and takes many twists and turns.
A deft movement or action is made quickly and with skill.
When you discern something, you notice, detect, or understand it, often after thinking about it carefully or studying it for some time.
When you act in an imprudent fashion, you do something that is unwise, is lacking in good judgment, or has no forethought.
If an idea or thought is incisive, it is expressed in a penetrating and knowledgeable manner that is clear and brief; additionally, it can demonstrate impressive understanding of related ideas or thoughts.
Ingenuity in solving a problem uses creativity, intelligence, and cleverness.
A judicious person shows good or sound judgment because they are wise and careful in making decisions.
If someone is lucid, they are able to understand things and think clearly; this adjective also describes writing or speech that is crystal clear and easy to understand.
When something is luminous, it is bright and glowing.
A misapprehension is a misunderstanding or false impression that you are under, especially concerning another person’s intentions towards you.
A myopic person is unable to visualize the long-term negative consequences of their current actions; rather, they are narrowly focused upon short-term results.
If someone is naive, they are too trusting of others; they don’t have enough experience in life to know whom to believe.
If you are oblivious to something that is happening, you do not notice it.
Someone is obtuse when they are slow to understand things; someone can choose to be obtuse when they deliberately do not try to figure things out.
Someone who is omniscient seems to know absolutely everything.
Something is opaque if it is either difficult to understand or is not transparent.
A paradox is a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or unrealistic but may surprisingly express a possible truth.
Something that is pellucid is either extremely clear because it is transparent to the eye or it is very easy for the mind to understand.
When a substance permeates something, it enters into all parts of it.
A precocious child shows advanced intelligence or skill at an unusually young age.
When someone exhibits profundity, they display great intellectual depth and understanding; profundity can also be the depth or complexity of something.
A sagacious person is wise, intelligent, and has the ability to make good practical decisions.
A savant is a person who knows a lot about a subject, either via a lifetime of learning or by considerable natural ability.
Something that is turbid, such as water, is muddy or cloudy because it has lots of small pieces of matter or dirt in it.
If you did something in an unwitting fashion, you didn’t know that you were doing it; therefore, it was unintentional on your part.
Something that is vacuous is empty or blank, such as a mind or stare.
Something that is vaporous is not completely formed but foggy and misty; in the same vein, a vaporous idea is insubstantial and vague.
Noun
perspicacity
pur-spi-KAS-i-tee
Context
Samuel’s perspicacity made him an ideal company employee: he was not only quick to understand the company’s structure, but could also easily identify ways to succeed. His perspicacity and clear insight led the board of directors to recommend him early on as a valuable partner. The board wanted this company to move into the marketplace quickly, and knew that people who exercised perspicacity and clear reasoning were essential in making this happen.
Spice City "How to bring people to our city? Ah, ha, people love spice, so we will not only offer them free spice when they come to our city, but we will have the lovely smell of spices all about our sweet-smelling city!" So great was the perspicacity of our city's marketing expert!
Examples
Heat and animosity, contest and conflict, may sharpen the wits, although they rarely do; they never strengthen the understanding, clear the perspicacity, guide the judgment, or improve the heart.
— Walter Savage Landor, English writer
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive,” the middle-aged man said in greeting as the doctor entered the room. The doctor, just returned from the second Anglo-Afghan War, was amazed by the man’s perspicacity.
—
The New York Times Magazine
Brute force isn't the only source of strength, and spiritual devotion isn't a sign of diminished intellectual perspicacity.
—
Newsweek
In 57 percent of the tests, the ape chose the box that elicited a smile from the scientist rather than an expression of disgust. Good choice. The box that brought the smile contained a grape, and the ape was rewarded for his perspicacity in reading human facial expressions.
—
Newsweek
Perspicacity refers to the “characteristics of seeing through” something in order to quickly understand it.
Word Constellation
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Related Words
acuity ·
acumen ·
adroit ·
aptitude ·
astute ·
capacious ·
cerebral+ ·
cogent ·
cogitate ·
cognitive ·
deft ·
discern ·
incisive ·
ingenuity+ ·
lucid ·
luminous ·
omniscient ·
pellucid ·
permeate ·
precocious ·
profundity ·
sagacious ·
savant ·
ambiguous ·
byzantine ·
conundrum ·
convoluted ·
imprudent+ ·
judicious ·
misapprehension+ ·
myopic ·
naive+ ·
oblivious ·
obtuse ·
opaque ·
paradox ·
turbid ·
unwitting+ ·
vacuous ·
vaporous ·
Similar sense
Opposite sense
Word Variants
perspicacious
adj
→
very perceptive; quick to understand
perspicuity
n
→
clearness of expression; intelligibility
perspicuous
adj
→
clear in expression; highly intelligible
The section lists important variants and alternate definitions of the headword. Knowing variants will often help you both remember and understand the word. Not all variants are listed - only the ones we think that are important for you to know.
