sharp-witted

American  

[shahrp-wit-id] / ˈʃɑrpˈwɪt ɪd /

adjective

1. having or showing mental acuity; intellectually discerning; acute.

---

sharp-witted British  

adjective

1. having or showing a keen intelligence; perceptive

---

Other Word Forms

• sharp-wittedly
  adverb
• sharp-wittedness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of sharp-witted

First recorded in 1580–90

Example Sentences

But by sticking to Ruth’s perspective, the camera attuned to every emergence of childlike glee, adult pleasure or sharp-witted flash of authority, we come to see a person, not a patient.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 27, 2025

Gwen Crockett said her daughter was a sharp-witted speaker from a young age.

From Salon • Jan. 18, 2024

Zephaniah, who was born in Birmingham in central England on April 15, 1958, was a sharp-witted and often provocative presence across British media as well as regularly performing at political gatherings and demonstrations.

From Washington Times • Dec. 7, 2023

The Financial Times described The Bee Sting as "generous, immersive, sharp-witted and devastating; the sort of novel that becomes a friend for life".

From BBC • Nov. 25, 2023

These workers, illiterate but sharp-witted, who for some reason called themselves The Club, assumed that the better-educated readers looked down on them.

From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith