1
as in smart
having or showing a practical cleverness or judgment
a shrewd used car dealer who knew how to make the best possible deal shrewd investments that paid off big
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2
as in bitter
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
she pulled her coat tighter against the shrewd breeze whipping down the alley
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3
as in cunning
clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means
a shrewd operator in the real estate game, she made every buyer think they were getting the deal of the century
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Recent Examples of shrewd
For the past 35 years, Colleen Murphy has been in the front ranks of protecting our right to know, many of those years as the shrewd general of the ragtag good government army.
—
Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 7 Mar. 2026
The dispensing of moral instruction is an often tiresome staple of child-friendly animation, but the lessons that Mabel must learn—to be less impulsive, less strident, and more willing to see the good in others—also turn out to be shrewd organizational and negotiating tactics.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 6 Mar. 2026
While lacking Khomeini’s theological standing, Khamenei proved to be politically shrewd.
—Abbas Al Lawati, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
Conspiracy theorists, right-wing extremists, and all sorts of eccentric people arrive in the community, whose founder and leader is a shrewd German man.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shrewd
Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 7 Mar. 2026
The dispensing of moral instruction is an often tiresome staple of child-friendly animation, but the lessons that Mabel must learn—to be less impulsive, less strident, and more willing to see the good in others—also turn out to be shrewd organizational and negotiating tactics.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 6 Mar. 2026
While lacking Khomeini’s theological standing, Khamenei proved to be politically shrewd.
—Abbas Al Lawati, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
Conspiracy theorists, right-wing extremists, and all sorts of eccentric people arrive in the community, whose founder and leader is a shrewd German man.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shrewd
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shrewd
Adjective
-
Vaughn Hardenberg Westwood The Dodgers’ Andrew Friedman gets all the attention and accolades as being one of the smartest and most successful general managers in sports, and deservedly so.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Mar. 2026
-
There is some chance our leaders individually and collectively will not fight and will draw people together to do the difficult, smart things necessary to handle these challenges well enough to beat the odds.—
Ray Dalio,
Fortune,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Sacramento’s top public media institutions filed Monday a settlement agreement in their dueling lawsuits to determine the owner of a transmission tower, ending a bitter legal dispute.—
Ishani Desai,
Sacbee.com,
17 Mar. 2026
-
Without proper attention, a carafe will take on a brown tinge, and limescale buildup will eventually reduce the machine's efficiency, leading to bitter-tasting coffee and other malfunctions.—
Louise Parks,
Martha Stewart,
16 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
In state media comedy shows, jokes about Putin are told from time to time, but they are used to bolster his image as a powerful, cunning leader, and hold up Russia as a great country.—
Neringa Klumbytė,
The Conversation,
4 Mar. 2026
-
These ambitious, cunning, and often amoral Cold War operatives were usually marginal or even inconsequential figures at home.—
Alfred McCoy,
Literary Hub,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Cecilia, or, Memoirs of an Heiress brims with irony, withering dialogue, psychosocial revelation and astute moral inquiry.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Mar. 2026
-
George was a highly influential, politically astute prelate who died almost a decade before Leo XIV’s election.—
Christopher Lamb,
CNN Money,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The Moon, planet of emotions, soars into your 9th House of Philosophy today, encouraging you to explore ideas, cultures, or beliefs that soften sharp edges.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Here on the streets of Israel, there's been a sharp increase in the amount of rocket and missile attacks from Iran and its proxy Hezbollah in the past 24 hours.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
15 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Though when he’s finally seen in full evil flight, the actor is arguably allowed to wax a little too cute about it.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
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Place them in a cute Weck jar and have a little pickle fork handy.—
Mary Shannon Wells,
Southern Living,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Following in the footsteps of social-media-savvy churches such as Hillsong, in Los Angeles, Mercy Culture had a worship band that played earnest, anthemic rock, and its pastors wore skinny jeans.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2026
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Walker, an East High School graduate, began performing comedy two decades ago in Denver, quickly moving up the ladder in the alternative and mainstream scenes with his savvy, profane and charming routines that profanely poked fun at his dating habits, among other topics.—
John Wenzel,
Denver Post,
14 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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As the nation bonded as one over the past two weeks biting nails, screaming at wins, wincing at crashes and choking up at all the beautiful moments of Olympic competition, another group of athletes were – and still are – out honing their multi-level championship skills.—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
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The bulk of a Tyrannosaurus rex skull, the biting point of a shark tooth, the startling familiarity of a hominin footprint—and then there’s the charm inherent to any sample of regurgitalite, the paleontological term for fossilized vomit.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
18 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shrewd.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shrewd. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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