intellect

[ in-tl-ekt ]
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noun
  1. the power or faculty of the mind by which one knows or understands, as distinguished from that by which one feels and that by which one wills; the understanding; the faculty of thinking and acquiring knowledge.

  2. capacity for thinking and acquiring knowledge, especially of a high or complex order; mental capacity.

  1. a particular mind or intelligence, especially of a high order.

  2. a person possessing a great capacity for thought and knowledge.

  3. minds collectively, as of a number of persons or the persons themselves.

Origin of intellect

1
1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin intellēctus, equivalent to intelleg(ere) “to understand” + -tus suffix of verbal action; see intelligent

synonym study For intellect

1. See mind.

Other words for intellect

Words Nearby intellect

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use intellect in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for intellect

intellect

/ (ˈɪntɪˌlɛkt) /


noun
  1. the capacity for understanding, thinking, and reasoning, as distinct from feeling or wishing

  2. a mind or intelligence, esp a brilliant one: his intellect is wasted on that job

  1. informal a person possessing a brilliant mind; brain

  2. those possessing the greatest mental power: the intellect of a nation

Origin of intellect

1
C14: from Latin intellectus comprehension, intellect, from intellegere to understand; see intelligence

Derived forms of intellect

  • intellective, adjective
  • intellectively, adverb

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