intelligent

[in-tel-i-juhnt] / ɪnˈtɛl ɪ dʒənt /

ADJECTIVE

very smart

Synonyms

STRONGEST

astute brainy bright brilliant creative imaginative inventive knowledgeable original perceptive rational resourceful smart well-informed wise

WEAK

able acute alert alive all there apt calculating capable clever comprehending deep discerning enlightened exceptional highbrow ingenious instructed keen knowing penetrating perspicacious profound quick quick-witted ready reasonable responsible sage sharp thinking together understanding whiz witty

Antonyms

STRONGEST

dark dull ignorant normal old stupid typical unaware uncreative uneducated unimaginative unintelligent uninventive unreasonable unresourceful worn

WEAK

foolish idiotic imbecile

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

People who knew some of his tutoring students said they described him as intelligent and skilled at mathematics and science.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026

It's precisely the complexity of Muirhead's personality that makes her such a compelling figure as, according to Allott, she "was articulate and intelligent, a promising young pathologist with eight years of medical training".

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

“People should realize that scientists die also and not make too much of this,” the family said in a statement, adding that she was “a beautiful and marvelously intelligent person.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026

It’s not that these people were more intelligent than the others in the study.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

Forty years old, with a thick mustache and the posture of a flagpole, Liddy was known around Washington as intelligent, fiercely loyal, and something of a loose cannon.

From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin

Vocabulary lists containing intelligent

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Positive Words to Describe People, List 1

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List 5

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