as in genius
formal
someone who knows a lot about many different things
She is rightly regarded as something of a polymath in her extensive knowledge of all the earth sciences.
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variants
or polymathic
as in erudite
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Recent Examples of polymath
Matt Grobar, Deadline, 24 June 2025
During the Pax Romana, Vitruvius described an architect as a polymath who uses all sorts of disciplines to make a great building.
—David Sokol, Architectural Digest, 14 July 2025
There are more than 30 permanent exhibits, including one devoted to the life and exploits of the German polymath and Jesuit priest Athanasius Kircher.
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 22 July 2025
But the musical polymath decided that the best place to be was a Phish show at Folsom Field in Boulder, CO on Saturday night (July 5).
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for polymath
Adjective
With offices in London, Los Angeles, and New York, Object & Animal has collaborated with the likes of two-time Palme d’Or winner Ruben Östlund (Triangle of Sadness), Bertie Ellwood (Lessons in Chemistry, Hawkeye), Oscar Boyson (Our Hero, Balthazar), and creative polymath FKA twigs.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 24 June 2025
During the Pax Romana, Vitruvius described an architect as a polymath who uses all sorts of disciplines to make a great building.
—David Sokol, Architectural Digest, 14 July 2025
There are more than 30 permanent exhibits, including one devoted to the life and exploits of the German polymath and Jesuit priest Athanasius Kircher.
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 22 July 2025
But the musical polymath decided that the best place to be was a Phish show at Folsom Field in Boulder, CO on Saturday night (July 5).
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for polymath
Recent Examples of Synonyms for polymath
Noun
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Between them, the gangly mods kept alive the fading tradition of feuding musical geniuses, a path that Paul McCartney and John Lennon had paved before them.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
28 Aug. 2025
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As Cal-Berkeley professor Enrico Moretti has long articulated, the genius of high-end construction and job creation can’t be limited to the headline jobs.—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Jude is an erudite man of the people whose hyper-literate intellectualism is only matched by his Chaucer-like vulgarity, and his work has long reveled in an impish fascination with the relationship between art, labor, and technology.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
11 Aug. 2025
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Judge Arun Subramanian, an energetic erudite judge, set a tight schedule – the trial day started at 9 a.m. and ended at 3 p.m. most days.—
Kara Scannell,
CNN Money,
4 July 2025
Noun
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There are some artists who are compelled by the challenge of technical brilliance, striving solely to be recognized as a virtuoso of their craft.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Aug. 2025
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Wu Man, a Chinese-pipa virtuoso, performs, with the Knights, the concerto that was written for her by Lou Harrison (Metropolitan Museum; Sept. 9).—
Shauna Lyon,
New Yorker,
15 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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To become literate is, therefore, to grasp the deeper meaning of the object of study, to evaluate it critically and to interact actively with it.—
Nino Letteriello,
Forbes.com,
22 Aug. 2025
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And even at the bigger firms top decision makers often aren’t literate in the language of climate risk.—
Justin Worland,
Time,
16 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Yes, the warrior who fought wizards, ogres and various other monsters in the Roger Corman-produced 1983 sword and sorcery cult classic is back on the big screen.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Aug. 2025
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Umphrey’s McGee jam wizard Kris Myers stepped down in May, a couple years after rotator-cuff surgery.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
9 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The critics were not defending scholarly standards, but their exclusive claim to setting those standards.—
Ilya Shapiro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Aug. 2025
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These are scholarly works that some students initially struggle to comprehend.—
Nicole Donawho,
JSTOR Daily,
22 July 2025
Adjective
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The committee's report said Renken conducted minimal research for multiple decades, with his academic publications effectively ending in 2001.—
Kelly Meyerhofer,
jsonline.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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All of the students take in-person classes in a range of core academic and enrichment areas.—
Kerry McDonald,
Forbes.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Choose from 11 sizes and 28 color combinations, including sage and denim.—
Gabriella Maestri,
Travel + Leisure,
25 Aug. 2025
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The strategy has helped to transform land that’s naturally an arid mix of coastal sage and chaparral and deserts into an economic and cultural powerhouse.—
Andre Mouchard,
Oc Register,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Polymath.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/polymath. Accessed 2 Sep. 2025.
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