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brainpower

American  
[breyn-pou-er] / ˈbreɪnˌpaʊ ər /

noun

  1. intellectual capacity; mental ability.

  2. people with superior mental abilities.

    an emergency medical conference of all available brainpower.


brainpower British  
/ ˈbreɪnˌpaʊə /

noun

  1. intelligence; mental ability

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of brainpower

First recorded in 1875–80; brain + power

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.

See Examples For:

Many have questioned Brook's brainpower during his England career and at times this winter he has made it hard not to wonder.

From BBC Feb. 24, 2026

The division has dwindled in recent months as Meta pours more resources into its teams chasing superintelligence, the goal to build AI systems that exceed human brainpower.

From The Wall Street Journal Nov. 11, 2025

The changes under Bhargava, said LaMarche, “will be a huge infusion of money, brainpower, and strategic thinking.”

From Seattle Times Mar. 7, 2024

When Elon Musk sought a location for Tesla’s “global engineering headquarters,” the seat of the company’s innovative brainpower, he found it in Hewlett Packard’s former corporate headquarters — not in Austin, but Palo Alto.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 29, 2024

Yet William conquered a number of them in the 1920s and 1930s, using only paper, pencil, and brainpower.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

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