intellect

American  

[in-tl-ekt] / ˈɪn tlˌɛkt /

noun

1. the power or faculty of the mind by which one knows or understands, as distinguished from that by which one feels and that by which one wills; the understanding; the faculty of thinking and acquiring knowledge.

   Synonyms:

   common sense, sense, reason

2. capacity for thinking and acquiring knowledge, especially of a high or complex order; mental capacity.

3. a particular mind or intelligence, especially of a high order.

4. a person possessing a great capacity for thought and knowledge.

5. minds collectively, as of a number of persons or the persons themselves.

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intellect British  

/ ˈɪntɪˌlɛkt /

noun

1. the capacity for understanding, thinking, and reasoning, as distinct from feeling or wishing

2. a mind or intelligence, esp a brilliant one

   his intellect is wasted on that job

3. informal a person possessing a brilliant mind; brain

4. those possessing the greatest mental power

   the intellect of a nation

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Related Words

See mind.

Other Word Forms

• intellective adjective
• intellectively adverb

Etymology

Origin of intellect

1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin intellēctus, equivalent to intelleg(ere) “to understand” + -tus suffix of verbal action; see intelligent

Explanation

Intellect is how much intelligence you have. Einstein was known for having a great intellect. Mickey Mouse's friend Goofy has almost no intellect to speak of. Intellect is the mental equivalent of athletic ability or fashion sense, so someone is an intellect if they have great intellectual ability just as an athlete is someone who has great athletic ability. Intellect is something everyone has in some degree. If someone talks down to you, it's an insult to your intellect. Your teacher might say you have a sharp intellect if you have the intellect to figure out difficult problems. An intellectual is a person who has a lot of knowledge and prefers to think about things on an abstract or theoretical level rather than a practical one.

Example Sentences

"Yuriy was very smart. She really won him over with her intellect," Nina said.

From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026

I was devastated, ashamed even, to learn that my brain—the thing responsible for my intellect, which I pride myself on—was defective.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

Our critic said, “the Chicago-born artist has an omnivorous intellect, one that he proudly displays in this presentation of nearly 90 works from his three-decade career.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 18, 2026

This combination will make them much more productive and indispensable, turning AI into a force multiplier for human intellect.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 6, 2026

“We have seen,” Terman concluded, with more than a touch of disappointment, “that intellect and achievement are far from perfectly correlated.”

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

Related Words

• ability
• acumen
• genius
• intelligence
• intuition
• judgment
• savvy