intellectual

[in-tl-ek-choo-uhl]

adjective

1. appealing to or engaging the intellect.

   intellectual pursuits.

   Synonyms: mental

2. of or relating to the intellect or its use.

   intellectual powers.

   Synonyms: mental

3. possessing or showing intellect or mental capacity, especially to a high degree.

   an intellectual person.

4. guided or developed by or relying on the intellect rather than upon emotions or feelings; rational.

5. characterized by or suggesting a predominance of intellect.

   an intellectual way of speaking.

noun

1. a person of superior intellect.

2. a person who places a high value on or pursues things of interest to the intellect or the more complex forms and fields of knowledge, as aesthetic or philosophical matters, especially on an abstract and general level.

3. an extremely rational person; a person who relies on intellect rather than on emotions or feelings.

4. a person professionally engaged in mental labor, as a writer or teacher.

5. Archaic.,  intellectuals,

   1. the mental faculties.

   2. things pertaining to the intellect.

intellectual

/ ˌɪntɪˈlɛktʃʊəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the intellect, as opposed to the emotions

2. appealing to or characteristic of people with a developed intellect

   intellectual literature

3. expressing or enjoying mental activity

noun

1. a person who enjoys mental activity and has highly developed tastes in art, literature, etc

2. a person who uses or works with his intellect

3. a highly intelligent person

intellectual

1. A person who engages in academic study or critical evaluation of ideas and issues. (See intelligentsia.)

Other Word Forms

• intellectually adverb
• intellectualness noun
• half-intellectual adjective
• half-intellectually adverb
• hyperintellectual adjective
• hyperintellectually adverb
• hyperintellectualness noun
• nonintellectual adjective
• nonintellectually adverb
• nonintellectualness noun
• overintellectual adjective
• overintellectually adverb
• overintellectualness noun
• preintellectual adjective
• preintellectually adverb
• quasi-intellectual adjective
• quasi-intellectually adverb
• semi-intellectual adjective
• semi-intellectually adverb
• superintellectual adjective
• superintellectually adverb
• unintellectual adjective
• unintellectually adverb
• intellectuality noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of intellectual¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin intellēctuālis, equivalent to intellēctu-, stem of intellēctus intellect + -ālis -al ¹

Synonym Study

See intelligent.

Example Sentences

In fact the vast majority of new cases involve children without the intellectual disabilities often associated with stereotypical autistic behavior, such as sensitivities to touch and an absence of verbal skills.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

German psychiatric researchers of the early 20th century sought the causes of schizophrenia and other disorders in brain biology, an intellectual current that influenced the doctors who later carried out T4, as Ms. Antonetta writes.

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The family in which he grew up was “a very intellectual household, but definitely not people who pursued a ton of career stuff.”

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Prints, relatively inexpensive to produce and easy to distribute, were championed by some 18th-century intellectuals as the quintessential artistic medium of the Enlightenment.

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Given rational training rather than the then-standard collection of feminine accomplishments, women could, Wollstonecraft argued, prove themselves men’s intellectual equals, become companions in marriage, and play a significant role in civic society.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cerebral 
• creative 
• highbrow 
• mental 
• psychological 
• rational 
• scholarly 
• thoughtful