incisive
adjective
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Incisive has meant "impressively direct and decisive" since around 1834 and derives from the Latin verb caedere, meaning "to cut." Its linguistic kin include many cuttings from the fruitful stem caedere, such as scissors, chisel, incise ("to cut into or engrave"), excise ("to remove by cutting"), incisor ("a front tooth typically adapted for cutting"), incision ("cut" or "gash"), precise ("minutely exact"), and concise ("brief"). Incisive also carries a couple of lesser-known literal meanings relating to cutting: "having a cutting edge or piercing point" (as in "incisive fangs"), and, in dentistry, "of, relating to, or situated near the incisors."
Examples of incisive in a Sentence
Joe Rexrode, The Athletic, 10 Jan. 2025
All the better to zero in on detailed character sketches and incisive plot lines that should be the envy of most fiction novelists.
—Bob Gendron, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2025
Aaron Brown, an anchor who earned widespread praise for incisive reporting and calm demeanor during CNN‘s coverage of 9/11, has died.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 31 Dec. 2024
Black in Blues ties the experiences of Black Americans to the color in an incisive, accessible narrative.
—Lizz Schumer, People.com, 27 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Incisive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incisive. Accessed 24 Jan. 2025.
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incisive
adjective
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incisive
adjective
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