- past tense form of sophisticate.
- past participle of sophisticate.
sophisticated
Americanadjective
-
(of a person, ideas, tastes, manners, etc.) altered by education, experience, etc., so as to be worldly-wise; not naive.
a sophisticated young socialite;
the sophisticated eye of an experienced journalist.
- Synonyms:
- cultivated, experienced, cosmopolitan, worldly
- Antonyms:
- naive
-
pleasing or satisfactory to the tastes of sophisticates, or people who are educated, cultured, and worldly-wise.
sophisticated music.
-
deceptive; misleading.
-
complex or intricate, as a system, process, piece of machinery, or the like.
a sophisticated electronic control system.
-
of, for, or reflecting educated taste, knowledgeable use, etc..
Many Americans are drinking more sophisticated wines now.
adjective
-
having refined or cultured tastes and habits
-
appealing to sophisticates
a sophisticated restaurant
-
unduly refined or cultured
-
pretentiously or superficially wise
-
(of machines, methods, etc) complex and refined
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sophisticated
First recorded in 1595–1605; sophisticate + -ed 2
Explanation
If something is sophisticated, it's complicated and intricate. The inner workings of a computer are sophisticated. Sophisticated can also refer to having good taste. Either way, sophisticated things are impressive. Sophisticated systems and objects are complex and tough to understand. High school math is a lot more sophisticated than grammar school math. Driving a car is more sophisticated than riding a bike. People are sophisticated if they have plenty of worldly experience and what is generally regarded as "good taste." Sometimes, that just means they have a lot of money and like things that are fancy. Going to a symphony is considered more sophisticated than going to a rock concert.
Vocabulary lists containing sophisticated
The Outsiders
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The Great Gatsby
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List 2
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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.
And DWP is well below the national average in leaky pipes, he said, thanks to sophisticated monitoring and management techniques.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
Birdsong is one of the natural world's most sophisticated forms of sound-based communication.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Killer whales are highly intelligent apex predators and have been known to play with their prey and deploy sophisticated tactics to ensnare them.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
The business relationships, he argued, made him much more sophisticated when it came to diplomatic relationships.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
Thus Wotton had a sophisticated analysis of the Scientific Revolution, although he did not use the term.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
