perspicacious

English

WOTD – 7 January 2008

Etymology

First attested 1548, from Late Latin perspicācitās (“discernment”), from Latin perspicax (“sharp-sighted”), from perspiciō (“look through”), from per- (“through”) + speciō (“look at”). See also perspective.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌpɜː.spɪˈkeɪ.ʃəs/
• (US) enPR: pûr'spĭ·kā'shəs, IPA^(key): /ˌpɜːɹ.spɪˈkeɪ.ʃəs/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪʃəs
• Hyphenation: per‧spi‧ca‧cious

Adjective

perspicacious (comparative more perspicacious, superlative most perspicacious)

1. (figuratively) Of acute discernment; having keen insight; mentally perceptive.
   • 1982 April 17, David K. Jose, “Habeas Corpus”, in Gay Community News, page 3:

     As a gay prisoner my incarceration has given me a perspicacious view of our judicial system.

2. (obsolete) Able to physically see clearly; quick-sighted; sharp-sighted.

Derived terms

Terms derived from perspicacious

• perspicaciously
• perspicaciousness

Related terms

Terms etymologically related to perspicacious

• perspicacity
• perspicuity
• perspicuous
• perspicuously
• perspicuousness

Translations

showing keen insight

• Arabic: مُتَبَصِّر (mutabaṣṣir)
• Belarusian: прані́клівы (praníklivy)
• Bulgarian: проницателен (bg) (pronicatelen), прозорлив (bg) (prozorliv)
• Catalan: perspicaç
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 明察秋毫 (zh) (míngchá qiūháo)

• Czech: bystrý (cs)
• Danish: klarsynet
• Dutch: scherpzinnig (nl), spitsvondig (nl), schrander (nl)
• Esperanto: akrasenta, akravida
• Estonian: tähelepanelik
• Finnish: tarkkanäköinen (fi)
• French: perspicace (fr)
• German: scharfsinnig (de)
• Greek: οξυδερκής (el) (oxyderkís)
• Hindi: सूक्ष्मदर्शी (hi) (sūkṣmadarśī)
• Hungarian: tisztánlátó (hu)
• Italian: perspicace (it)
• Japanese: (acute discernment) 明察 (ja) (めいさつ, meisatsu), (having keen insight) 明敏 (ja) (めいびん, meibin), 明達 (めいたつ, meitatsu)
• Korean: 명민한 (myeongminhan), 총기 있는 (chonggi inneun)
• Latin: perspicax
• Lithuanian: įžvalgus
• Macedonian: про́никлив (prónikliv), остро́умен (ostróumen)
• Norwegian: skarpsindig

  Norwegian Nynorsk: skarpsindig

• Polish: wnikliwy (pl) m, przenikliwy (pl)
• Portuguese: perspicaz (pt)
• Romanian: perspicace (ro)
• Russian: проница́тельный (ru) (pronicátelʹnyj)
• Slovak: bystrý
• Slovene: pronicljiv
• Spanish: perspicaz (es)
• Swedish: klarsynt (sv)
• Turkish: zeki (tr)
• Ukrainian: прони́кливий (pronýklyvyj)
• Urdu: چتر

able to physically see clearly

• Bulgarian: зорък (bg) (zorǎk)
• Dutch: scherpziend
• Esperanto: akravida
• French: clairvoyant (fr)
• Greek: οξυδερκής (el) (oxyderkís)
• Japanese: 明視 (ja) (めいし, meishi)
• Latin: perspicax
• Macedonian: о́строок (óstrook)
• Norwegian: klarsynt

  Norwegian Nynorsk: klarsynt, klårsynt

• Polish: bystry (pl)
• Russian: зо́ркий (ru) (zórkij)
• Spanish: clarividente (es)
• Swedish: klarsynt (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} perspicace (fr), ^{(please verify)} voyant clair
• German: ^{(please verify)} scharfsehend
• Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 穎悟／颖悟 (zh) (yǐngwù), ^{(please verify)} 颖悟 (zh) (yingwu)

See also

• clairvoyant
• conspicuous
• perspective