cognoscenti

American  

[kon-yuh-shen-tee, kog-nuh-] / ˌkɒn yəˈʃɛn ti, ˌkɒg nə- /

plural noun

singular

cognoscente

1. persons who have superior knowledge and understanding of a particular field, especially in the fine arts, literature, and world of fashion.

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cognoscenti British  

/ ˌkɒɡnəʊ-, ˌkɒnjəʊˈʃɛntɪ /

plural noun

1. (sometimes singular) people with informed appreciation of a particular field, esp in the fine arts; connoisseurs

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Etymology

Origin of cognoscenti

1770–80; < Italian, Latinized variant of conoscente (present participle of conoscere to know) < L. See cognition, -ent

Example Sentences

The icehouse, used as a living space, became “a site of convivial socializing among musicians and cognoscenti.”

From The Wall Street Journal

These places were never meant to be for the sophisticated “cognoscenti” or fragrance enthusiasts, but the most popular scents and profiles of today bring an air of nostalgia for those youthful, care-free times.

From Salon

Maybe you even noticed when the trendsetting L.A. apparel brand Online Ceramics released a bootleg Berkey hoodie in December, confirming the filter’s status as a kind of secret handshake for the town’s Palo Santo-burning, quartz-collecting cognoscenti.

From Los Angeles Times

Mair, Foster Bodorff and three other local tree cognoscenti formed a semicircle around Van Pelt’s Paul Bunyanesque figure, with a bushy beard once bright red turned white.

From Seattle Times

The jeering crowd, consisting mostly of the New York and L.A. rap cognoscenti, didn’t respect outsiders in a genre they either invented or dominated, and they nearly heckled OutKast offstage, but not before André reeled off a prophesy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• buff
• expert
• intellectual
• philosopher
• professor
• scholar
• thinker