incisive

[in-sahy-siv]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR incisive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

penetrating; cutting; biting; trenchant: an incisive tone of voice.

remarkably clear and direct; sharp; keen; acute: an incisive method of summarizing the issue.

adapted for cutting or piercing.

of or relating to the incisors: the incisive teeth.

Nearby words

Origin of incisive

From the Medieval Latin word incīsīvus, dating back to 1520–30. See incise, -ive

SYNONYMS FOR incisive

1. acid, mordant; sarcastic, sardonic.

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Related forms

in·ci·sive·ly, adverbin·ci·sive·ness, nounun·in·ci·sive, adjectiveun·in·ci·sive·ly, adverb

un·in·ci·sive·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for incisive

His correspondence, much of which survives, is that of an incisive and articulate observer.
Stonewall Jackson, VMI’s Most Embattled Professor|S. C. Gwynne|November 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
John Jenkins describes Miller as an “incisive witness both to scientific acumen and religious belief.”
Meet the Prizewinning Catholic Biologist Creationists Can’t Stand|Karl W. Giberson|April 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But unlike Bloom and Eagleton, his books have been, while erudite and incisive, unashamedly populist.
John Sutherland‘s Enjoyable Little History of Literature|Malcolm Forbes|November 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It took time, but Hemingway eventually met his match in the incisive Kenneth Lynn.
Norman Mailer: A Life Lived Loud|Adam Begley|October 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST

The ideas in these comics are more subtle and incisive than simply depicting the imprisonment of the capitalist metropolis.
Smoked Fish Surrealism: Ben Katchor’s Comics of NYC Neurotics|Jacob Siegel|March 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He had no right and no wish to know what the other man chose to conceal beneath that curt and incisive manner.
The Shepherd of the North|Richard Aumerle Maher
A faintly quizzical look came into the man's incisive stare.
V. V.'s Eyes|Henry Sydnor Harrison
The old man's voice grew suddenly clear and incisive, and Orsino broke off in the middle of his sentence.
Don Orsino|F. Marion Crawford
"It was sold for money, I suppose," he said with studied and incisive calmness.
An Outcast of the Islands|Joseph Conrad
Wrede, in his incomparably succinct and incisive way, had the courage to say so.
The Origin of Paul's Religion|J. Gresham Machen

British Dictionary definitions for incisive

incisive

adjective

keen, penetrating, or acute

biting or sarcastic; mordantan incisive remark

having a sharp cutting edgeincisive teeth

Derived Formsincisively, adverbincisiveness, noun

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

Word Origin and History for incisive

incisive

adj.

early 15c., inscisif, "slashing, cutting with a sharp edge," from Middle French incisif and directly from Medieval Latin incisivus, from Latin incis-, past participle stem of incidere (see incision). Originally literal; figurative sense of "mentally acute" first recorded 1850 as a borrowing from French. Related: Incisively; incisiveness.

Medicine definitions for incisive

incisive

[ĭn-sī′sĭv]

adj.

Having the power to cut.

Relating to the incisor teeth.

incisive

adjective

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Origin of incisive

Examples from the Web for incisive

incisive

adjective

incisive

incisive

adj.