intuit
Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
intuits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
intuited,
past participle, past
-
intuiting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
intuitsimple
-
intuitssimple
-
have intuitedperfect
-
has intuitedperfect
-
am intuitingprogressive
-
are intuitingprogressive
-
is intuitingprogressive
-
have been intuitingperfect progressive
-
has been intuitingperfect progressive
Past
-
intuitedsimple
-
had intuitedperfect
-
was intuitingprogressive
-
were intuitingprogressive
-
had been intuitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of intuit
First recorded in 1770–80; back formation from intuition
Explanation
To intuit is to get a strong sense of something using only your intuition. You might give up on a job interview halfway through, if you intuit that the job wouldn't be a good fit for you. When you have a hunch about something, you intuit. For example, a pregnant woman might intuit that she's having twins, and a teacher might intuit that a student is having a hard day and needs some extra attention. The earliest meaning of intuit was "to tutor," until the mid-19th century. The word comes from the Latin root intueri, "look at, comprehend, or contemplate."
Vocabulary lists containing intuit
Little Fires Everywhere
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Umberto Eco (1932-2016) Tribute List
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
The confrontational Portnoy seems to intuit that controversies aren’t to be softened but stoked, even staged, for more attention.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
I look for patterns and try to intuit a policy out of the behavior and the decisions.
From Slate ● May 24, 2025
“At some point, the tech will evolve to the point where those guys can intuit where we’re headed and then be there with a little surprise for us,” Weir said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2024
As you may intuit, this movie belongs to a very particular subgenre summed up in one declaration: boy, small English towns are full of weirdos.
From New York Times ● Mar. 28, 2024
Theo gives a formal bow at the neck, which he must intuit would appeal to my father’s sense of respect and decorum.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
For the target, as “Fellow Travelers” intuits, isn’t queerness, or racial equality, or anti-capitalism per se, but nonconformity of any sort, which power seeks to stamp out for its own preservation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 10, 2023
But what a child intuits, grown scientists struggle to understand in detail.
From Science Magazine ● Apr. 6, 2023
When a sketchy guy checks in as first name Cash, last name Money, she intuits that his intentions are more than romantic.
From New York Times ● Mar. 31, 2023
With surprising ease, she intuits how they operate.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 18, 2021
When I walk back onto the street, the father intuits my apprehension.
From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak
Study after study now confirms what my father and mother intuited long before science caught up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
As Diamond intuited, geographic mechanisms were significant in some areas, but the continent's dominant axis did not uniformly dictate the potential for cultural spread.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 14, 2024
It was this divine connection that Calixto intuited — and “Mujeres Divinas,” the classic ranchera song by Vicente Fernández — that prompted the friends to introduce themselves as Conexión Divina.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2023
Now in his late-20s, Gary had been self-conscious about his weight at the time, and Yoko quickly intuited the source of his anxiety.
From Salon ● Nov. 9, 2023
Barely a pause, but a pause nonetheless as the caller intuited that something wasn’t right.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
The most daunting challenge was intuiting what Bessette would have worn in the years before she met Kennedy and became one of the most photographed women in the world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
Saito works alone and with obvious joy here, engaging with a ready laugh, intuiting when to let you savor, entertaining any and all questions, slipping into the back sometimes for preparation.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 22, 2022
For their part, Banville’s characters seem highly self-aware, intuiting the existence of a higher power that is toying with them and wondering what he is up to.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 31, 2022
“To me it’s about intuiting the effects of it, being aware of its presence and how it molds us as much as the other way round. We are interconnected.”
From New York Times ● Oct. 19, 2021
Bob Golomb is a great car salesman because he is very good, in the moment, at intuiting the intentions and needs and emotions of his customers.
From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
