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.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 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 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 Forty-five years have passed since the late Professor Price coined his perspicacious term. IEEE Spectrum, 3 Nov. 2010
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perspicacious
Adjective
  • The initial idea was Woltemade and Yoane Wissa would dovetail minutes wise, with the former Brentford striker expected to start more often in the short term to allow the German a period to acclimatise.
    Chris Waugh, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
  • And speaking of which, Christmas is right around the corner, and we parents are already stretched thin budget-wise.
    Melissa Willets, Parents, 7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • But as Abetti freely admits, there is a chasm between a brilliant idea and a lasting enterprise.
    Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 3 Oct. 2025
  • These little Swedish jewels are a reminder that even the most stoic and pragmatic carmakers can inspire with a brilliant high note of design and imagination.
    Robert Ross, Robb Report, 3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The combination of clear instructions, clever engineering and high-energy videos makes CrunchLabs stand out among subscription boxes, offering a yearlong experience that feels fresh with each delivery.
    Emily Glover, Parents, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Luckily, clever Frances must have understood her caper was destined for failure.
    Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The company’s mission is to eliminate design errors and accelerate innovation through intelligent automation.
    Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 7 Oct. 2025
  • His modernization was both intelligent and beautiful, rooted in Coco’s own starting point — menswear codes and techniques.
    Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Google introduced a new Nest smart speaker last week to go alongside its Gemini smart home upgrades and new security cameras.
    PC Magazine, PC Magazine, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Protection against scams comes from continual education that helps older people develop and sustain their skepticism while also increasing their confidence in their ability to make smart, informed decisions.
    Madhusree Mukerjee, Scientific American, 8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • One in particular was slow working, keen nosed, and close ranging.
    Worth Matthewson, Outdoor Life, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Hartwell was not keen on the idea.
    Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Rivian produces adventure-ready electric vehicles with high power outputs and exceptional ground clearance.
    Charles Singh, Nashville Tennessean, 3 Oct. 2025
  • This dual-purpose design requires exceptional stiffness, vibration control, and precision engineering, allowing heavy highway loads and high-speed rail traffic to share the same structure safely.
    Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Driving down the price after Ingram cleared waivers last week, while acquiring a goaltender with excellent potential and a reasonable track record, is about as astute a move as there is.
    Daniel Nugent-Bowman, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
  • The odd, sometimes astute connections and ideas her seemingly new brain forms are not entirely unpleasant.
    Bekah Waalkes, The Atlantic, 25 Sep. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Perspicacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perspicacious. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on perspicacious

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!