genius
noun
ˈjē-nē-əs\
\
Definition of genius
1a plural genii : an attendant spirit of a person or place
b plural usually genii : a person who influences another for good or bad He has been accused of being his brother's evil genius.
2 : a strong leaning or inclination : penchant
3a : a peculiar, distinctive, or identifying character or spirit the genius of our democratic government
b : the associations and traditions of a place
c : a personification or embodiment especially of a quality or condition
5 plural usually geniuses
a : a single strongly marked capacity or aptitude had a genius for getting along with boys— Mary Ross
b : extraordinary intellectual power especially as manifested in creative activity
c : a person endowed with extraordinary mental superiority especially : a person with a very high IQ
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms & Antonyms for genius
Synonyms
brain, brainiac, intellect, thinker, whiz, wiz, wizard
Antonyms
blockhead, dodo, dolt, dope, dumbbell, dummy, dunce, fathead, goon, half-wit, hammerhead, idiot, imbecile, knucklehead, moron, nitwit, numskull (or numbskull), pinhead
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of genius in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Until marketing geniuses Larry Lucchino and Charles Steinberg dared to saturate the market with Padres games on TV, the team wasn’t on the tube very often, so most of this is about 20 years old. — Nick Canepa, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Grant and Orsillo offer welcome frivolity in Padres’ TV booth," 14 July 2018 In a world that so easily dubs white men geniuses, but views Black girls as needing less protection and care from as young as five years old, nurturing their spirits and dreams can be transformative. — Abby Haglage, refinery29.com, "4 Black Girls With Big Dreams & The 4 Women Living Them," 13 July 2018 Thousands of people look to their videos on product essentials and routines to help maintain their curly hair, so their hands-on experience has helped them discover some genius tricks. — Devon Abelman, Allure, "11 Curl-Washing Tips From Real Women With Kinky-Curly Hair," 12 July 2018 No one knows which marketing genius first started shaving off a penny or a dollar from an even price point. — Adam Snitzer, miamiherald, "Why 9 is my favorite number," 12 July 2018 Del Toral in turn connected her to Marc Edwards, a civil and environmental engineering professor out of Virginia Tech and a MacArthur genius grant winner. — Richard Horan, The Christian Science Monitor, "'The Poisoned City' tells the horrific story of Flint's contaminated water," 10 July 2018 People’s reaction to learning that USC’s current faculty includes four Nobel laureates and four recent winners of the MacArthur genius grant is decidedly different. — Alex Bhattacharji, Town & Country, "Can USC Survive Scandal and Shed Its Spoiled-Kid Reputation Once and For All?," 10 July 2018 The model and social media genius took to Twitter to point out the logistical flaws in Trump's plan, since the moral and ethical flaws are more than obvious. — Kayleigh Roberts, Marie Claire, "Chrissy Teigen Slammed Trump for His Recent Elizabeth Warren and #MeToo Comments," 7 July 2018 There’s no cat-and-mouse game going on, no taunts from a genius criminal. — James Poniewozik, New York Times, "‘Sharp Objects,’ a Mesmerizing Southern Thriller, Cuts Slow but Deep," 5 July 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'genius.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for genius
genius
noun
English Language Learners Definition of genius
: a very smart or talented person : a person who has a level of talent or intelligence that is very rare or remarkable
: a person who is very good at doing something
: great natural ability : remarkable talent or intelligence
See the full definition for genius in the English Language Learners Dictionary
genius
noun
\
Kids Definition of genius
1 : a very smart or gifted person
2 : great natural ability He has artistic genius.
3 : a very clever or smart quality The lads came … chattering all the time about Tom's stupendous plan and admiring the genius of it.— Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer
genius
noun
\
\
Medical Definition of genius
1 : extraordinary intellectual power especially as manifested in creative activity
2 : a person endowed with transcendent mental superiority specifically : a person with a very high IQ
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on genius
What made you want to look up genius? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
Great Scrabble Words—A Quiz
-
- Which of the following Q-without-U words means the number five in cards or dice?
Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games
-
Great Scrabble Words—A Quiz
Words to improve your Scrabble game
Take the quiz -
Which Came First? Quiz
Do you know which word is older?
Take the quiz -
Name That Thing
Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!
Take the quiz -
Add Diction
Build a chain of words by adding one letter at a time.
Play the game
Share genius
Resources for genius