aptitude
Americannoun
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capability; ability; innate or acquired capacity for something; talent.
She has a special aptitude for mathematics.
- Synonyms:
- bent, propensity, proclivity, predisposition, faculty, gift
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readiness or quickness in learning; intelligence.
He was placed in honors classes because of his general aptitude.
- Synonyms:
- acumen
-
the state or quality of being apt; special fitness.
noun
-
inherent or acquired ability
-
ease in learning or understanding; intelligence
-
the condition or quality of being apt
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of aptitude
First recorded in 1400–50; from Late Latin aptitūdō; see origin at apt, -i-, -tude
Explanation
An aptitude is something you're good at. A rock star might have an aptitude for energizing an audience, or for trashing his hotel room. When you have a talent or do something well, people say that you have an aptitude for it. But you don't have to be born with an aptitude; you can also acquire your abilities. You are probably already well acquainted with this word, since the zillions of standardized tests you have taken in school are usually called aptitude tests.
Vocabulary lists containing aptitude
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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The Giver
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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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.
The SAT’s original name, the Scholastic Aptitude Test, implied a rigor that even its current defenders would not claim.
From Seattle Times • Jan. 7, 2024
Judith took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, hoping to enlist in the military, and scored well enough to enter West Point, only to be rejected because of her immigration status.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 30, 2023
In “The Big Test,” Lemann used the history of the SAT, the Scholastic Aptitude Test, to explain the rise of a rigid meritocratic hierarchy that dominates American society.
From Washington Post • Oct. 31, 2019
The Pentagon has complained about high-school kids not able to pass the ASVAB”—the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 11, 2015
When it came time to apply to college, Joy got a perfect score on the math portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
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.
