savvy
Americanadjective
noun
verb (used with or without object)
verb
-
to understand or get the sense of (an idea, etc)
-
I don't (he doesn't, etc) understand
noun
adjective
Etymology
Origin of savvy
First recorded in 1775–85; from Spanish sabe, 3rd-person singular present of saber “to know,” from Latin sapere “to be wise, taste”; see sapient
Explanation
You are known as someone with a lot of business savvy, but only because you've managed to keep your staggering debts a secret. Which is actually pretty savvy. Someone who is savvy is shrewd and perceptive. Most English words stem directly from other European languages, like French and Latin. Not savvy. It comes from the West Indies, a twist on the French savez vous? — “Do you know?” Savvy was first recorded in its adjective form in 1905. Synonyms for the noun form include acumen, discernment, grasp, perception, and sharpness.
Vocabulary lists containing savvy
This Week in Words: August 11 - 17, 2018
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The Things They Carried
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Bright Ideas: Synonyms For "Smart"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“People have no confidence to move the money themselves,” said Judy Herbst, executive director of Savvy Ladies, a nonprofit that offers a helpline for financial-literacy questions.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 21, 2026
Savvy Su’e was the freshman quarterback at Banning last season.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2026
Savvy hosts know it’s a low-lift, make-ahead miracle.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025
Savvy investors should be on the edge of their seats.
From Barron's • Dec. 10, 2025
Savvy operators within these organizations diverted trucks and colluded with smugglers to import fleets of secondhand cars, vans, and buses from China.
From "Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West" by Blaine Harden
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
