Trivia Time

Which mythological figure was so adept at weaving that she challenged the goddess Athena?

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adept

American  

[uh-dept, ad-ept, uh-dept] / əˈdɛpt, ˈæd ɛpt, əˈdɛpt /

adjective

1. 

   very skilled; proficient; expert.

   an adept juggler.

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noun

• adepts
  plural

1. a skilled or proficient person; expert.

adept British  

adjective

1. very proficient in something requiring skill or manual dexterity

2. skilful; expert

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noun

1. a person who is skilled or proficient in something

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• adeptness
  noun
• nonadept
  adjective
• unadept
  adjective
• adeptly
  adverb
• nonadeptly
  adverb
• unadeptly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• adepts
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of adept

First recorded in 1655–65; from Medieval Latin adeptus “one who has attained (the secret of transmuting metals),” noun use of Latin past participle of adipiscī “to attain to” ( ad- “toward” + -ep- combining form of ap- in aptus + -tus past participle suffix); see ad-, apt

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Explanation

Are you looking for another word to describe a person who is highly skilled, very proficient or expert at something? Try the adjective adept! In the days of Medieval Latin, an adeptus was a person who had learned the secrets of alchemy. Although an adept person today cannot turn lead into gold, the adjective is still high praise meaning "skilled, expert, highly proficient."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

adept adepts

They must contend with both an opaque and sluggish bureaucracy and well-connected local rivals adept at navigating India’s corridors of power.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026

Players adept at challenges need to tap their helmets more often: Each team starts the game with two challenges.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

“The justice often publicly portrayed as unyielding and inflexible is, behind the scenes, the conservative who is uniquely adept at finding common ground on the most divisive issues.”

From Salon ● Oct. 6, 2026

And while City may look to rebuild with a profile of player they believe will be adept at being successful in the EFL, you will likely see a number of their younger players fast-tracked.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

“Your friend performs delightfully,” he continued after a pause, on seeing Bingley join the group; “and I doubt not that you are an adept in the science yourself, Mr. Darcy.”

From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen

To borrow from “The Big Lebowski,” another cult classic passed around by DVD-owning adepts, say what you will about moron-maxxing, at least it’s an ethos.

From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026

But if even adepts feel that way, why do these true crime mavens continue to dedicate hours dutifully trying to crack mysteries with methods they know are imperfect?

From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2020

As McKenna told me, western seekers were eager to believe that eastern adepts had supernatural abilities.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 24, 2019

Literature extolling the virtues of silence has been accumulating for millennia, in Hindu and Buddhist scriptures, in sayings of Christian hermits and mystics, in teachings by modern yoga adepts and meditators.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 27, 2017

There are a few genuine adepts present who throw themselves rapturously into the music, eyes shut, arms upraised, waiting, no doubt, for the onset of glossolalia.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

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Related Words

• accomplished
• adroit
• capable
• deft
• proficient
• skilled
• skillful
• versed

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