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.

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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 Forty-five years have passed since the late Professor Price coined his perspicacious term. IEEE Spectrum, 3 Nov. 2010 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perspicacious
Adjective
  • In hindsight that decision may not have been the wisest.
    Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 5 July 2025
  • Demonstrating a talent for working in fluent french peppered with a british accent, the actor delivers one of his most indelible acting turns as the sly, wry, and wise business mogul-turned- butler who finds new purpose in life working on the other side of the fence.
    Pete Hammond, Deadline, 3 July 2025
Adjective
  • The growing number of robots in its warehouses is yet more evidence of this brilliant truth.
    John Tamny, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025
  • That’s why these convenient travel sachets are beyond brilliant.
    Brianna Peters, Vogue, 1 July 2025
Adjective
  • Light, clever, and just leftfield enough to feel like a proper find.
    Lela London, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025
  • Dubno’s novel sounds equally thoughtful and nasty, clever and juicy and full of great drama.
    Literary Hub July 1, Literary Hub, 1 July 2025
Adjective
  • Operation Bounce House follows Oliver Lewis, a colonist on the planet New Sonora, who leads a simple life on his family ranch, playing with his band and tending to his family's selection of intelligent agriculture bots.
    Rachel Raposas, People.com, 14 July 2025
  • These earbuds feature intelligent noise control, which removes up to twice as much background noise as previous AirPods models.
    BestReviews, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
Adjective
  • If you’re just getting started with rebounding and want something compact and easy to use (that doesn’t cost a small fortune), here’s a smart entry point.
    Jordan Galloway, SELF, 15 July 2025
  • If your primary goal is to maximize workspace while ensuring your computer can grow with your needs, a mini-PC paired with a quality monitor is a smarter, longer-lasting solution.
    Ken Colburn, AZCentral.com, 14 July 2025
Adjective
  • Shi is particularly keen to dive deeply into conversation with Benioff on precisely these points.
    Alexander Puutio, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025
  • Motherwell finished third in the Scottish Premier League that season, behind Celtic and Rangers, and while McGhee was keen not to lean too much on a ‘do it for Phil’ message, that clearly hung over the squad for the whole season.
    Nick Miller, New York Times, 10 July 2025
Adjective
  • Drought Severe to exceptional drought conditions were prevalent for much of south-central Texas when the downpours came, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
    ABC News, ABC News, 7 July 2025
  • One traveler noted their exceptional comfort during a trip to Portugal, praising their elevated look and all-day wearability.
    Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2025
Adjective
  • As many of our astute commenters guessed, between the peeing on himself and the trouble getting it up, Harry Goldenblatt has prostate cancer.
    Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 27 June 2025
  • An astute and compassionate portrait of sisterhood, flaws and all, the dynamics between the characters are sublime.
    Fran Littlewood June 24, Literary Hub, 24 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Perspicacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perspicacious. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.

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