savvy

[sav-ee]Informal.

See more synonyms for savvy on Thesaurus.com

adjective, sav·vi·er, sav·vi·est.

experienced, knowledgable, and well-informed; shrewd (often used in combination): consumers who are savvy about prices;a tech-savvy entrepreneur.

noun

Also sav·vi·ness. practical understanding; shrewdness or intelligence; common sense: a candidate who seemed to have no political savvy.

verb (used with or without object), sav·vied, sav·vy·ing.

to know; understand.

Origin of savvy

1775–85; < Spanish sabe, present 3rd singular of saber to know < Latin sapere to be wise; see sapient

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for savvier

knowing, acute, experienced, wise, calculating, discerning, smooth, slick, keen, sharp, smart, cunning, astute, brainy, cagey, canny, clever, crafty, farsighted, foxy

Examples from the Web for savvier

Contemporary Examples of savvier

I'll just say this: A savvier me would have invested in gold and prepper stocks five years ago.
The Right-Wing Money Model
Justin Green
January 7, 2013
There is a savvier way to go about it—they can exercise their power of the purse without risking default.
To Solve Debt Crisis, GOP Should Put Obama on a Reward Program
Stan Veuger
December 25, 2012
And a few of the savvier, more entrepreneurial bloggers turned their own sites into more robust media outlets.
Netroots Bloggers Mark 10th Birthday in Decline and Struggling for Survival
David Freedlander
October 24, 2012
In taking on the governor of California, Palin foolishly launched a rivalry with a smarter, savvier version of herself.
The Palin-Schwarzenegger Smackdown
Joe Mathews
December 22, 2009

British Dictionary definitions for savvier

savvy

verb -vies, -vying or -vied

to understand or get the sense of (an idea, etc)
no savvy I don't (he doesn't, etc) understand

noun

comprehension

adjective -vier or -viest

mainly US shrewd; well-informed

Word Origin for savvy

C18: corruption of Spanish sabe (usted) (you) know, from saber to know, from Latin sapere to be wise

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 savvier

savvy

1785, "practical sense, intelligence;" also a verb, "to know, to understand;" West Indies pidgin borrowing of French savez(-vous)? "do you know?" or Spanish sabe (usted) "you know," both from Vulgar Latin *sapere, from Latin sapere "be wise, be knowing" (see sapient). The adjective is first recorded 1905, from the noun. Related: Savvily; savviness.