wisdom
Americannoun
-
wisdom
plural
-
the quality or state of being wise; knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.
- Synonyms:
- understanding, sense
- Antonyms:
- stupidity
-
scholarly knowledge or learning.
the wisdom of the schools.
- Synonyms:
- enlightenment, erudition, sapience
- Antonyms:
- ignorance
-
wise sayings or teachings; precepts.
-
a wise act or saying.
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(initial capital letter) Wisdom of Solomon.
noun
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the ability or result of an ability to think and act utilizing knowledge, experience, understanding, common sense, and insight
-
accumulated knowledge, erudition, or enlightenment
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archaic a wise saying or wise sayings or teachings
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obsolete soundness of mind
Synonym Usage
See information.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of wisdom
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English wīsdōm; cognate with Old Norse vīsdōmr, German Weistum. See wise 1, -dom
Explanation
Wisdom is the combination of experience, knowledge and careful judgment. If you've got it, you're "wise." If you haven't, well don't worry, most of us don't either. Wisdom is also the term we give to the sum total of a culture's knowledge and application of that knowledge, acquired over time. We talk about "the wisdom of the ancient Greeks," for example, meaning everything about their culture from their scientific and philosophical discoveries to the art and culture they created. Don't confuse wisdom with knowledge — which is merely the accumulation of facts with no sense of what meaning to make from them.
Vocabulary lists containing wisdom
An Inspirational Back-to-School Word List
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act IV
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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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.
Through this wisdom of a masterclass designer, most of all I will remember Bob’s laughter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026
One of the oldest pieces of Wall Street wisdom is not to try catching a falling knife—a stock that’s plunging.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
As debate rages over how to respond to the growing power of artificial intelligence, Bill Gates is throwing a billion dollars and some words of wisdom at the problem.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
Noussair Mazraoui is the back-up left-back, which only heightens the debate over the wisdom not to buy one before the transfer window closed.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
To my relief I honestly did not know any of the names he read— now I understood the wisdom of the ubiquitous “Mr. Smit.”
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
Definitions 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.
