perspicacity

noun

Definition of perspicacitynext
as in intellect
an ability to notice and understand things that are difficult or not obvious She had the perspicacity to recognize the underlying problem.

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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 perspicacity The financial manipulations that undergirded their fortunes get scrutinized as theft from the public purse, praise for their courage and perspicacity yields to condemnation for their conduct. — Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026 And our unity with divine Mind endows each of us with the intelligence, spiritual insight, and perspicacity to make sound decisions, including consenting to receiving all the good God has prepared for us. — Karen Neff, Christian Science Monitor, 8 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perspicacity
  1. intellect
  2. sensitivity
  3. intelligence
  4. power
  5. astuteness
  6. sense
  7. acumen
  8. acuity
Noun
  • Reducing Gulliver’s Travels to only a topsy-turvy tale of humans both tiny and massive is to ignore the savage intellect that penned its words.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Caught in that sensual music all neglect Monuments of unageing intellect.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of intellect
Noun
  • These give the driver real-time control over accelerator pedal sensitivity, wheel slip thresholds (with nine traction settings) and cornering agility.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The authors concluded that improved laboratory sensitivity and statistical methods could help agencies better interpret drinking-water monitoring results.
    — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of sensitivity
Noun
  • Author Yuval Noah Harari has been pointing out the difference between consciousness and intelligence.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Floris was a former top intelligence analyst in charge at the bureau's Washington Field Office, while Benavides was the former deputy assistant director at the FBI's Counterintelligence Division.
    — Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of intelligence
Noun
  • The brokerage said South Korea could emerge as a key market for additional capacity in Asia, with operators that secure power, land and long-term customer contracts better positioned to expand.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 6 Nov. 2026
  • These arrangements form part of Google’s broader effort to secure power for its expanding data center infrastructure while reducing the carbon emissions associated with natural gas generation.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of power
Noun
  • The attack was a move that the usually hesitant Mas had never previously attempted, let alone pulled off, while the successful deployment of a satellite rider demonstrated tactical astuteness that the team have often been accused of lacking.
    — Chris Marshall-Bell, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of astuteness
Noun
  • Art—in the broadest sense—has been enlisted to this aim in the region at least once before, namely in the construction of hundreds of new churches during the spiritual low point of the immediate postwar period.
    — Kristian Vistrup Madsen, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2026
  • But cancer, a spinal issue, and three surgeries in three years changed my body and my sense of balance.
    — Maribeth Romslo, Rolling Stone, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of sense
Noun
  • Cignetti has tapped into a distinctly Hoosier brand of team pride, which proves that his acumen is just as strong off the football field as on it.
    — Domenica Bongiovanni, IndyStar, 28 Jan. 2026
  • The guys up at Auburn rave about his intelligence, his football acumen and his work ethic.
    — Creg Stephenson | [email protected], al, 20 Jan. 2023
Definition of acumen
Noun
  • Jeon Do-yeon, meanwhile, brings to Possible Love the extraordinary emotional acuity that has made her one of Korean cinema’s most compelling performers.
    — Lisa Wong Macabasco, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Beyond the emotional acuity, much of the film’s ambitious methods can feel like an anachronism in 2026.
    — Bridget Arsenault, Vanity Fair, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of acuity

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perspicacious
perspicacity
perspicuity
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Cite this Entry

“Perspicacity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perspicacity. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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