wit

[ wit ]

/ wɪt /

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See synonyms for: wit / wits / witting on Thesaurus.com

noun

the keen perception and cleverly apt expression of those connections between ideas that awaken amusement and pleasure.

speech or writing showing such perception and expression.

a person having or noted for such perception and expression.

understanding, intelligence, or sagacity.

Usually wits .

powers of intelligent observation, keen perception, ingenious contrivance, or the like; mental acuity, composure, and resourcefulness: using one's wits to get ahead.
mental faculties; senses: to lose one's wits;frightened out of one's wits.

OTHER WORDS FOR wit

1 drollery, facetiousness, waggishness.

2 banter, joking, witticism, quip, raillery, repartee, badinage, persiflage; bon mot.

3 wag, jester, satirist, epigrammatist.

4 wisdom, sense, mind.

5a cleverness, astuteness, insight, perspicacity, shrewdness, acumen.

5b mind, reason, sanity, saneness; marbles.

See synonyms for wit on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about wit

at one's wit's end. at the end of one's ideas or mental resources; perplexed: My two-year-old won't eat anything but pizza, and I'm at my wit's end.

keep / have one's wits about one, to remain alert and observant; be prepared for or equal to anything: to keep your wits about you in a crisis.

live by one's wits, to provide for oneself by employing ingenuity or cunning; live precariously: We traveled around the world, living by our wits.

Origin of wit

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English: “mind, thought”; cognate with German Witz, Old Norse vit; akin to wit²

synonym study for wit

See humor.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wit

whit, wit

Words nearby wit

Wister, wisteria, wistful, wistfully, wistfulness, wit, witan, witbier, witblits, witch, witch alder

Other definitions for wit (2 of 2)

wit²

[ wit ]

/ wɪt /

verb (used with or without object), present singular 1st person wot,2nd wost,3rd wot,present plural wit or wite;past and past participle wist;present participle wit·ting.

Archaic. to know.

Origin of wit

First recorded before 900; Middle English witen, Old English witan; cognate with Dutch weten, German wissen, Old Norse vita, Gothic witan to know; akin to Latin vidēre “to see,” Greek oîda (dialect woîda “I know,” and ideîn (dialect wideîn ) “to see,” Sanskrit vidati “(he) knows”; see wot

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use wit in a sentence

They wanted to linger for a few days, which turned into four days of heavy drinking and blasting wit, much of it at James’s expense.
To Find Hope in American Cooking, James Beard Looked to the West Coast|John Birdsall|October 2, 2020|Eater
To wit, check out this latest ETF flow data from BoA Securities.
Is M&A back? Investors hope so, and that’s lifting global stocks|Bernhard Warner|September 15, 2020|Fortune
To wit, the kids this morning masked up and entered the school building, one at a time.
A flurry of M&A deals lifts global stocks. Yes, even tech stocks|Bernhard Warner|September 14, 2020|Fortune
With caustic wit, Iannucci examines the humanity of his characters and the absurdity of their behavior with both passion and precision.
FROM THE VAULTS – Straight, but not narrow|Brian T. Carney|September 11, 2020|Washington Blade

To wit, buyers appeared eager to jump back into tech names Wednesday.
Where do tech stocks go from here?|Anne Sraders|September 10, 2020|Fortune
His mature wit and poetic style drew in those around him and we connected instantly.
Cuban Hip-Hop Was Born in Alamar|Daniel Levin|December 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With twice as many British soldiers, Washington was in for a fiercely competitive battle of wit and strength.
The British Royals Reinvade Brooklyn: William and Kate Come Watch Basketball on Historic Battle Site|Justin Jones|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was renowned for his wit, disarming his critics with unfailing humor.
Boris Johnson’s Churchill Man Crush|Michael F. Bishop|November 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Renowned livestock specialist and autism advocate Temple Grandin brought her unique intellect and wit to Reddit.
The Most Inspiring Bits of Temple Grandin’s Reddit AMA|Emily Shire|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Amid our grief we now see that New York had been distracted by flash and wit and cash for too long.
The Resilient City: New York After 9/11|John Avlon|September 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We had six field-pieces, but we only took four, harnessed wit twice the usual number of horses.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
To place wit above sense is to place superfluity above utility.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
Vincent Alsop died; a presbyterian clergyman, who attacked Dr. Sherlock with great wit and some seriousness.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
He was judge of the admiralty court of Pennsylvania; his writings abound with wit, humor and satire.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell
John Hales died; an English author, so much admired for his wit and learning, that he is called the ever memorable.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell

British Dictionary definitions for wit (1 of 2)

wit¹

/ (wɪt) /

noun

the talent or quality of using unexpected associations between contrasting or disparate words or ideas to make a clever humorous effect

speech or writing showing this quality

a person possessing, showing, or noted for such an ability, esp in repartee

practical intelligence (esp in the phrase have the wit to)

Scot and Northern English dialect information or knowledge (esp in the phrase get wit of)

archaic mental capacity or a person possessing it

obsolete the mind or memory

Word Origin for wit

Old English witt; related to Old Saxon giwitt, Old High German wizzi (German Witz), Old Norse vit, Gothic witi. See wit ²

British Dictionary definitions for wit (2 of 2)

wit²

/ (wɪt) /

verb

archaic to be or become aware of (something)

adverb

to wit that is to say; namely (used to introduce statements, as in legal documents)

Word Origin for wit

Old English witan; related to Old High German wizzan (German wissen), Old Norse vita, Latin vidēre to see

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with wit

wit

see at one's wit's end; have one's wits about one; live by one's wits; scare out of one's wits; to wit.

wit

OTHER WORDS FOR wit

Idioms about wit

Origin of wit

synonym study for wit

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wit

Words nearby wit

Other definitions for wit (2 of 2)

Origin of wit

Words related to wit

How to use wit in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wit (1 of 2)

Word Origin for wit

British Dictionary definitions for wit (2 of 2)

Word Origin for wit

Other Idioms and Phrases with wit