Synonyms of shrewd

shrewd

adjective

ˈshrüd 

1

as in smart

having or showing a practical cleverness or judgment

a shrewd used car dealer who knew how to make the best possible deal

shrewd investments that paid off big

Synonyms & Similar Words

• smart
• astute
• savvy
• wise
• sharp
• clever
• brilliant
• intelligent
• knowing
• hardheaded
• cunning
• veteran
• experienced
• canny
• keen
• heady
• clear-eyed
• clear-sighted
• sharp-witted
• quick
• wily
• bright
• slick
• sagacious
• sly
• subtle
• perceptive
• insightful
• artful
• perspicacious
• hard-boiled
• crafty
• devious
• cagey
• tricky
• guileful
• foxy
• resourceful
• discerning
• ingenious
• pawky
• sage
• nimble
• percipient
• dodgy
• sapient
• brainy
• discriminative
• discriminating
• agile
• apt
• quick-witted
• calculating
• alert
• scheming
• sharp-eyed
• sharp-sighted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• naive
• ingenuous
• guileless
• artless
• innocent
• unknowing
• gullible
• unwise
• exploitable
• unperceptive
• dumb
• simple
• dense
• stupid
• obtuse
• foolish
• slow
• dull
• unintelligent
• thoughtless
• idiotic
• dopey
• silly
• feebleminded
• ignorant
• thickheaded
• weak-minded
• brainless
• moronic
• brain-dead
• imbecile
• uninformed
• witless
• dim-witted
• slow-witted
• softheaded
• empty-headed
• gormless
• knuckleheaded
• thick-witted
• lamebrain
• half-witted
• airheaded
• lunkheaded
• birdbrained

2

as in bitter

causing intense discomfort to one's skin

she pulled her coat tighter against the shrewd breeze whipping down the alley

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bitter
• sharp
• biting
• keen
• brisk
• penetrating
• stinging
• piercing
• raw
• cutting
• smarting
• snappy
• caustic
• corrosive
• invigorating
• nippy
• prickly
• needlelike
• tingling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• gentle
• mild
• soothing
• balmy

3

as in cunning

clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means

a shrewd operator in the real estate game, she made every buyer think they were getting the deal of the century

Synonyms & Similar Words

• cunning
• cute
• slick
• subtle
• wily
• deceptive
• fraudulent
• dishonest
• sly
• treacherous
• crooked
• artful
• crafty
• devious
• cagey
• beguiling
• tricky
• designing
• scheming
• guileful
• foxy
• astute
• deceitful
• calculating
• dodgy
• sharp
• shady
• slippery
• unscrupulous
• glib
• Machiavellian
• sneaky
• covert
• oblique
• shifty
• facile
• plotting
• clandestine
• knavish
• underhanded
• undercover
• hypocritical
• circular
• underhand
• insincere
• serpentine
• roundabout
• secret
• circuitous
• surreptitious
• concealed
• backhanded
• stealthy
• furtive
• insinuating
• smooth-tongued
• two-faced
• mealy
• double-dealing
• left-handed
• mealymouthed
• hugger-mugger

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• ingenuous
• guileless
• artless
• innocent
• obvious
• public
• plain
• simple
• honest
• sincere
• straightforward
• outspoken
• forthright
• real
• direct
• open
• candid
• frank
• unaffected
• unpretentious
• unconcealed
• natural
• unsophisticated
• unvarnished
• patent
• impressionable
• childlike
• unpretending
• unworldly
• aboveboard
• simpleminded
• plainspoken
• undesigning
• unstudied
• trusting
• trustful
• unforced

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective shrewd differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of shrewd are astute, perspicacious, and sagacious. While all these words mean "acute in perception and sound in judgment," shrewd stresses practical, hardheaded cleverness and judgment.

a shrewd judge of character

When is it sensible to use astute instead of shrewd?

While the synonyms astute and shrewd are close in meaning, astute suggests shrewdness, perspicacity, and diplomatic skill.

an astute player of party politics

When could perspicacious be used to replace shrewd?

The meanings of perspicacious and shrewd largely overlap; however, perspicacious implies unusual power to see through and understand what is puzzling or hidden.

a perspicacious counselor saw through the child's facade

When might sagacious be a better fit than shrewd?

While in some cases nearly identical to shrewd, sagacious suggests wisdom, penetration, and farsightedness.

sagacious investors got in on the ground floor

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of shrewd

But Pick is on offense, with a sky-high stock to play with and a mandate to protect the firm’s reputation as Wall Street’s shrewdest buyer. — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 16 July 2026

As a producer with a foot in both the classic-rock and modern pop/rap worlds, Watt possesses both a fanboy’s reverence for Stones history and a shrewd knowledge of the precision mechanics practiced in pro songwriters’ rooms. — Stuart Berman, Pitchfork, 13 July 2026

Beckham, a shrewd businessman, no doubt commands hefty fees for each endorsement, stacking his personal coffers handsomely. — Shann Biglione, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026

America’s bounty of wilderness is mostly the result of shrewd policy decisions that preserved these lands for all of us to cherish today. — Nicholas D. Kristof, Mercury News, 3 July 2026