having the power of discerning and judging properly as to what is true or right; possessing discernment, judgment, or discretion.
characterized by or showing such power; judicious or prudent.
a wise decision.
possessed of or characterized by scholarly knowledge or learning; learned; erudite.
wise in the law.
having knowledge or information as to facts, circumstances, etc..
We are wiser for their explanations.
Slang. informed; in the know.
You're wise, so why not give us the lowdown?
Archaic. having knowledge of magic or witchcraft.
get wise,
to become informed.
to be or become presumptuous or impertinent.
Don't get wise with me, young man!
wise to, familiar or aware; cognizant of; no longer deceived by a lie, confidence game, trick, or misdirection: Also beget wise to
In the end, the investors were wise to the fraud.
put / set someone wise, to inform a person; let a person in on a secret or generally unknown fact.
Some of the others put him wise to what was going on.
Chiefly Scot.
to instruct.
to induce or advise.
to show the way to; guide.
Scot. to direct the course of; cause to turn.
Isaac Mayer 1819–1900, U.S. rabbi and educator, born in Bohemia: founder of Reform Judaism in the U.S.
Stephen Samuel, 1874–1949, U.S. rabbi, theologian, and Zionist leader; born in Hungary.
possessing, showing, or prompted by wisdom or discernment
prudent; sensible
shrewd; crafty
a wise plan
well-informed; erudite
aware, informed, or knowing (esp in the phrase none the wiser )
slang in the know, esp possessing inside information (about)
archaic possessing powers of magic
slang cocksure or insolent
informal (often foll by to) to be or become aware or informed (of something) or to face up (to facts)
slang (often foll by to) to inform or warn (of)
Also: -ways. indicating direction or manner
clockwise
likewise
with reference to
profitwise
businesswise
What does -wise mean? The suffix -wise meaning “direction” or "a way of doing." It is occasionally used in a variety of everyday terms, particularly to indicate a movement. The form -wise comes from Old English wíse, meaning “way, manner; style, melody.” Yes, melody. Discover why at our entry for the related term verse.
The suffix -wise is old in the language in adverbs referring to manner, direction, etc.: crosswise; lengthwise. Coinages like marketwise, saleswise, and weatherwise are often criticized, perhaps because of their association with the media: Otherwise—or moneywise, as they were already saying in the motion-picture industry—Hollywood was at the crest of its supercolossal glory. This suffix should not be confused with the adjective wise1 , which appears in such compound words as streetwise and worldly-wise.
First recorded before 900; Middle English wis(e), Old English wīs; cognate with Dutch wijs, German weise, Old Norse vīss, Gothic (un)weis “ignorant, unlearned”; akin to wit 1, wit 2
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English: “way, manner; style, melody”; cognate with Dutch wijze, German Weise “tune, melody; (figurative) manner, way,” Old Norse vīsa “verse, stanza, short poem,” Danish vise “ballad”; akin to Greek eîdos (from weîdos ) “form, shape”
First recorded before 900; Middle English wisen, “to advise, reveal, guide,” Old English wīsian “to show the way, guide, direct,” akin to wīs wise 1; cognate with Old High German wīsan, Old Norse vīsa “to point out, indicate”
The adjective wise describes someone who has experience and a deep understanding. Your wise older sister always gives the best advice. When you make a decision based on careful thought and good judgment, you've made a wise choice. If someone calls you a wise guy, though, it's not a compliment: it's likely to be a criticism of your joke at someone else's expense or your rudeness. To wise off (or sometimes, to be wise), has a similar meaning: to talk back or be disrespectful.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Not everyone thinks squeezing out juniors is wise.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
Whether delaying benefits until age 70 was a wise decision is not changed by the fact that he died shortly thereafter.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
Mr. Mandelbaum answers all these questions in “The American Way of Foreign Policy,” a wise little book, accessible to nonspecialists, that should become a quiet, unflashy classic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
I didn't have great references from Colombia, because I was not very wise back then, but Mexico welcomed me with arms wide open, knowing one has good and bad moments in life.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
But Mrs. Clarke’s words made Penelope realize that she did not know where the wise old woman was buried.
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
Corona High baseball coach Andy Wise has pulled off the most intriguing acquisition of the summer season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
Research how you’ll gain access to cash abroad; an international debit card such as the Wise Card can simplify your cash management.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
She won her first Bafta for The Good Life, was invited onto the coveted Morecambe and Wise Christmas special - and met her husband, policeman Rodney Timson.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
“The inquiry is incomplete, with no known timeline or outcome,” Wise said in a note on the proceedings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Just like Philip Wise, she ain’t never got over that I was the first child born free in Buxton.
From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis
In Rio de Janeiro, U.S. -wise Brazilian Businessman Valentim Bougas urged Latin Americans to follow the ex ample of European nations, which met in Paris last summer to canvass their needs.
From Time Magazine Archive
Likewise, New Yorker Music Critic Winthrop Sargeant attacked the suffix -wise, as in taxwise.
From Time Magazine Archive
When the shortcomings of any illustrious man save Borrow are under discussion, 'les defauts de ses qualites' is the criticism- -wise as charitable—which they evoke.
From The Life of George Borrow by Jenkins, Herbert George
It’s just we need wiser, smarter, better leaders, who are, frankly, less mercenary.
From Salon ● Jun. 15, 2026
I parked them there years ago and planned to never touch them, but now I’m wondering if this is a risk that older, wiser investors would warn against.
From MarketWatch ● May 22, 2026
So what would a wiser return look like?
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
The first two tell of young people, restless in their curiosity; the third is of an older, wiser man, and Mr. Leung delivers a performance of quiet gravity worthy of the ginkgo itself.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
He hadn’t been any wiser than anyone else.
From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby
Private companies rely on semiannual reports, after all, he noted, although the idea of taking private companies as models for publicly traded corporations might not strike experienced investors as the wisest thing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Just because Minneapolis and Hennepin County can refuse to cooperate, does it follow that refusing cooperation is the wisest course of action?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
Andy Samberg’s Jake Peralta heads a misfit but inevitably successful team of New York detectives, headed by the driest, wisest chief in TV history — Captain Holt, played by the late, great Andre Braugher.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 10, 2025
"Parents were worried about their children going into school," Smit told NOS Radio, "so it was wisest to have a day of calm and then go back on Monday."
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
“He is. He’s the lord of our world—the wisest and most terrible of us all,” said the Brown Bear softly and reverently.
From "Mary Poppins" by P. L. Travers
Recovered: I hope not too many people were hurt before you wised up.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 17, 2022
That's something people have really wised up to.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2022
They wised up at some point, whereas I still hadn’t learned.
From The Verge ● Dec. 13, 2021
College coaching staffs have wised up to benign fraud and view unverified workout stats with skepticism.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2021
"I just got wised up to something funny the last two days," remarked Wilson.
From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald
But now, experts say, Milei is wising up to the game, giving up some campaign promises while maneuvering to secure enough other priorities to claim victory.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2024
While U.S. players have led the development of retail media networks, European retailers are wising up to the opportunity.
From Reuters ● Jun. 12, 2023
Is this another N95 mask situation, where the public wising up to the supposed utility of something ends up shuffling them away from the people who need them most?
From Slate ● Apr. 22, 2020
In short, teams appear to be wising up.
From Washington Times ● Jan. 22, 2018
So I heard; his nibs here," indicating the bartender, "has been wising me up, a lot.
From The Lonesome Trail and Other Stories by Bower, B. M.
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.
