perspicacious

as in wise
formal having or showing an ability to notice and understand things that are difficult or not obvious She considers herself a perspicacious judge of character. The critic made some perspicacious observations about the film.

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective perspicacious differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of perspicacious are astute, sagacious, and shrewd. While all these words mean "acute in perception and sound in judgment," perspicacious implies unusual power to see through and understand what is puzzling or hidden.

a perspicacious counselor saw through the child's facade

When is astute a more appropriate choice than perspicacious?

Although the words astute and perspicacious have much in common, astute suggests shrewdness, perspicacity, and diplomatic skill.

an astute player of party politics

In what contexts can sagacious take the place of perspicacious?

The synonyms sagacious and perspicacious are sometimes interchangeable, but sagacious suggests wisdom, penetration, and farsightedness.

sagacious investors got in on the ground floor

When could shrewd be used to replace perspicacious?

While in some cases nearly identical to perspicacious, shrewd stresses practical, hardheaded cleverness and judgment.

a shrewd judge of character

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of perspicacious The 'perspicacious' Marvin Harrison Jr., and what that means for the Cardinals Like the former Ohio State star, Devin, 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, also was a receiver. Doug Haller, The Athletic, 29 July 2024 If a new Bridgerton-sibling romance each season is the series’ gimmick, then Penelope has proven to be its soul—a vividly realistic protagonist whose perspicacious alter ego tethered each fairytale courtship to earth. Judy Berman, TIME, 14 June 2024 More perspicacious than angry invective alone, that alchemy of tones has been her signature since the early ’90s, when a 20-something Hanna fronted Bikini Kill, the punk band that became the most visible act associated with the third-wave feminist movement known as riot grrrl. TIME, 7 May 2024 One of the few perspicacious journalists of the Trump era, Graeme Wood, put it pithily: The Deep State is in the White House, and Trump appointed it. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 13 Dec. 2023 With the help of friends in the publishing world, Jaffrey’s draft landed in the hands of the perspicacious Knopf editor Judith Jones in 1971. Mayukh Sen, Washington Post, 27 Nov. 2023 Photographs show Pym looking jolly and perspicacious, with charmingly crooked English teeth. Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 30 May 2022 This particular Ferrari F50 was delivered new, in 1996, to Étienne Léandri, a defense lawyer and perspicacious Ferrari collector from Monaco. Robert Ross, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2022 As some of the nation’s most perspicacious observers have noted, self-regulation is a crucial component of fixing what’s wrong with social media. Gilad Edelman, Wired, 30 Sep. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perspicacious
Adjective
  • The Camino is wise; its lessons come slowly, mile by mile, day by day.
    Daniela Diaz, Vogue, 8 Mar. 2025
  • Even if the snow continuously falls, removing it before more than four inches accumulates is wise, as large amounts of snow are significantly more difficult to remove.
    Kamron Sanders, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • The announcement has been viewed by over one million people on X (formerly known as Twitter) and had fans elated that the brilliant mind behind Succession was back in business with HBO for an original project.
    Russel Honoré, Newsweek, 6 Mar. 2025
  • Schneider drew up a brilliant inbounds play for Conesa, who turned and fired an on-the-mark 3-pointer.
    Maddie Hartley, Kansas City Star, 6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Their techniques are clever, and reveal interesting things about how large language models work.
    Alex Reisner, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2025
  • Aging can be a time of sustained growth — fueled by deliberate practice, emotional engagement, and the clever use of AI.
    Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Put differently, intelligent onboarding can enable financial service providers to reach thin-file and difficult-to-identify demographics while reducing dropout rates.
    James Bruni, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
  • What’s more, Asian elephants are highly social, highly intelligent, and endangered, raising intractable ethical obstacles to experimenting on them.
    Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Solar energy, smart home tech and open-air designs are more popular, too.
    Spencer Elliott, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
  • Learn about Florida-Friendly Landscaping principles, smart irrigation, vegetable gardening, and flower species to attract bees, butterflies, and beneficial insects.
    Joe Rassel, Orlando Sentinel, 5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Rosanna Fiedler, founder of the one-year-old brand Wyld Box Jewelry, creates adornments with the artistry of a sculptor and the vision of a keen vintage jewelry connoisseur.
    Kyle Roderick, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
  • As a keen music lover, Lowson decided to sing for the residents using the nursing home's karaoke kit.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • One exceptional find this season is Ashlyn —founded by the South Korean designer Ashlynn Park—which had a number of looks on display in an art gallery in Paris’ first arrondissement.
    Gemma A. Williams, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
  • The core motion module is capable of a maximum joint torque of 300 N·m, a peak torque density of 203 N·m/kg, and exceptional mobility with a walking speed of 2 m/s, along with a natural human-like gait.
    Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report, Fox News, 8 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • Both companies are dominant in their industries and feature very strong, astute leadership.
    StockStory Team, CNBC, 22 Feb. 2025
  • The financially astute among you (which is all of you, dear readers) will have spotted that a $599 phone being paid off at $5.99 a month should take 100 months, right?
    David Phelan, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Perspicacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perspicacious. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.

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