savvy
Americanadjective
-
savvier,
comparative
-
savviest
superlative
noun
verb (used with or without object)
-
savvies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
savvied,
past participle, past
-
savvying
present participle
verb
-
to understand or get the sense of (an idea, etc)
-
I don't (he doesn't, etc) understand
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
savvysimple
-
savviessimple
-
have savviedperfect
-
has savviedperfect
-
am savvyingprogressive
-
are savvyingprogressive
-
is savvyingprogressive
-
have been savvyingperfect progressive
-
has been savvyingperfect progressive
Past
-
savviedsimple
-
had savviedperfect
-
was savvyingprogressive
-
were savvyingprogressive
-
had been savvyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of savvy
First recorded in 1775–85; from Spanish sabe, 3rd-person singular present of saber “to know,” from Latin sapere “to be wise, taste”; see sapient
Explanation
You are known as someone with a lot of business savvy, but only because you've managed to keep your staggering debts a secret. Which is actually pretty savvy. Someone who is savvy is shrewd and perceptive. Most English words stem directly from other European languages, like French and Latin. Not savvy. It comes from the West Indies, a twist on the French savez vous? — “Do you know?” Savvy was first recorded in its adjective form in 1905. Synonyms for the noun form include acumen, discernment, grasp, perception, and sharpness.
Vocabulary lists containing savvy
This Week in Words: August 11 - 17, 2018
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The Things They Carried
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Bright Ideas: Synonyms For "Smart"
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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:
Especially when led authoritatively by Ms. Hurlin as Titania and Daniel Camargo as Oberon, with all the lesser characters in rapport, this “Dream” was a marvel of Ashton’s theatrical-ballet savvy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
Being humbled by a well-run, up-and-coming club like Lincoln, with far fewer resources but savvy ownership, will not be lost on Burnley supporters.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
If you create a realistic budget and learn to live within it, you’ll be able to pay off your debt and become a more savvy spender and saver.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
It’s something the culturally savvy clown of Eminem’s early career would have been smart enough to avoid.
From Salon ● Oct. 21, 2026
Both boats had savvy coxswains and powerful, experienced oarsmen.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
Is there a tech CEO who seems savvier than their peers?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
But the market may be growing savvier about distinguishing between companies at risk of disruption and those set to benefit from AI.
From Barron's ● May 7, 2026
If a bill would be painful but manageable, paying out of pocket may be the savvier move in the long run.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 21, 2026
In other cases, regarding HSAs specifically, people are using the money in a much savvier way.
From Slate ● Mar. 31, 2025
Relieved that I didn’t have to worry about him, I followed Sabrina and Daphne, another girl from Lykes Cottage who was a year older than I was and who seemed savvier than Sabrina.
From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter
Looking back, moving to one of the most expensive cities in America may not have been the savviest financial decision.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 2, 2026
Even the savviest, most battle-tested investors may fear missing out.
From Barron's ● May 22, 2026
That challenge is growing, even for the savviest of us.
From Salon ● Jan. 21, 2026
Mr. Carlson is one of the savviest and most experienced media figures in the country.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2025
Enter the NFL RedZone channel, one of the savviest things anyone’s ever put on TV.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2025
This fine example is plush and ripe, with plenty of nectarine and citrus flavors but without the aggressive grassiness of some New Zealand savvies.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 14, 2022
I says to myself: 'Jo's been on the grade all her life and savvies conditions.
From The She Boss A Western Story by Arthur Preston Hankins
There's one man up there savvies downhill shootin'.
From The Land of Strong Men by A. M. (Arthur Murray) Chisholm
"When he gets the thing figured out, in six months or a year, and savvies it was a put-up job from the start, somebody'll have it coming."
From The Lonesome Trail and Other Stories by B. M. Bower
Them guns," said Dave, "pretty near shoot themselves if a feller savvies a gun at all.
From The Land of Strong Men by A. M. (Arthur Murray) Chisholm
And it’s a blamed good thing my bronc savvied how t’ tend to business without me doin’ much!
From Alec Lloyd, Cowpuncher by Eleanor Gates
That's about how he would have put it aboard ship, but he hadn't quite savvied this shore-going chief clerk at his elbow.
From Wide Courses by James B. (James Brendan) Connolly
And say, even if I couldn't have savvied a word, that smile would have been enough.
From Torchy and Vee by Sewell Ford
He savvied the cow, the grass, the blizzard, the drought, the wolf, the young puncher in love with his own shadow, the old waddie remembering rides and thirsts of far away and long ago.
From Guide to Life and Literature of the Southwest, with a Few Observations by J. Frank (James Frank) Dobie
"I haven't savvied the code out well enough yet to read this one."
From El Diablo by Dan Sayre Groesbeck
For savvying everything, there's nobody going to give him the go-by!
From Under Fire: the story of a squad by Fitzwater Wray
And Johnnie he cruises over to China, and the old fellow, savvying how things are, says all right, marry, and they get married, and he gives 'em his blessing and lays down and dies.
From Sonnie-Boy's People by James B. (James Brendan) Connolly
Well, there's time for a chin before the choo-choo starts—thought I'd be early, not savvying this kind of travelling a great deal.
From Red Saunders His Adventures West & East by Henry Wallace Phillips
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