as in wise
formal
having or showing an ability to notice and understand things that are difficult or not obvious
She considers herself a perspicacious judge of character. The critic made some perspicacious observations about the film.
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Recent Examples of perspicacious
If a new Bridgerton-sibling romance each season is the series’ gimmick, then Penelope has proven to be its soul—a vividly realistic protagonist whose perspicacious alter ego tethered each fairytale courtship to earth.
—
Judy Berman, TIME, 14 June 2024
One of the few perspicacious journalists of the Trump era, Graeme Wood, put it pithily: The Deep State is in the White House, and Trump appointed it.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 13 Dec. 2023
With the help of friends in the publishing world, Jaffrey’s draft landed in the hands of the perspicacious Knopf editor Judith Jones in 1971.
—Mayukh Sen, Washington Post, 27 Nov. 2023
Photographs show Pym looking jolly and perspicacious, with charmingly crooked English teeth.
—Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 30 May 2022
This particular Ferrari F50 was delivered new, in 1996, to Étienne Léandri, a defense lawyer and perspicacious Ferrari collector from Monaco.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2022
As played by the perspicacious young performer Aoife Riddell, Phoebe is perhaps the realest part of the whole picture, a sweet and desperate and boy-crazy kid bouncing with eagerness and nerves.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Forty-five years have passed since the late Professor Price coined his perspicacious term.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Nov. 2010
Judy Berman, TIME, 14 June 2024
One of the few perspicacious journalists of the Trump era, Graeme Wood, put it pithily: The Deep State is in the White House, and Trump appointed it.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 13 Dec. 2023
With the help of friends in the publishing world, Jaffrey’s draft landed in the hands of the perspicacious Knopf editor Judith Jones in 1971.
—Mayukh Sen, Washington Post, 27 Nov. 2023
Photographs show Pym looking jolly and perspicacious, with charmingly crooked English teeth.
—Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 30 May 2022
This particular Ferrari F50 was delivered new, in 1996, to Étienne Léandri, a defense lawyer and perspicacious Ferrari collector from Monaco.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 7 Mar. 2022
As played by the perspicacious young performer Aoife Riddell, Phoebe is perhaps the realest part of the whole picture, a sweet and desperate and boy-crazy kid bouncing with eagerness and nerves.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Forty-five years have passed since the late Professor Price coined his perspicacious term.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Nov. 2010
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perspicacious
Adjective
-
Straight men are just catching up, vanity-wise, and political opportunists have eagerly fed into their insecurities.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
-
The obvious comparison would be Lily Allen’s West End Girl, another heartbreak concept album that captured the public imagination by aiming big, narrative-wise, stretching out the story song by song.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Miles is a brilliant basketball player, comparable to a painter or actor with her showmanship on the court and a mind that operates at a different level than most other athletes.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Mar. 2026
-
McGonigle had a brilliant debut on Thursday.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
More than this, or in spite of this, Tim was clever and silly.—
Cassandra Neyenesch,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice is bursting with ideas that feel like clever marginalia on an otherwise familiar setup.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Flexible loads, intelligent storage, and advanced demand coordination should be treated as capacity resources in grid planning, with regulatory frameworks updated accordingly.—
Brian Barlow,
Fortune,
28 Mar. 2026
-
This innovation signals a shift toward more intelligent, cooperative, and autonomous forms of warfare.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The Mets, Phillies and Braves are smart, draft well, develop players and spend big.—
Greg Cote
Updated March 27,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Despite standing at 6-foot-2 and playing a game more suited for a forward six inches taller, Payton entered Friday night having made 16 consecutive field goals, the vast majority of them being opportunistic dunks and layups off smart cuts and putbacks.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
David’s view The voters most keen to talk with political reporters are, typically, extremely engaged in politics.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
26 Mar. 2026
-
But Ikea forecasts even faster expansion, expecting the market to hit $48 billion by 2030 — momentum the company is keen to capture.—
Priyanka Salve,
CNBC,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The dim sum at Yan Ting, the Cantonese restaurant, is exceptional, each dumpling a small, perfect bite.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
1 Apr. 2026
-
However, the company says the bike offers exceptional range and ultra-fast charging.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
This hotel offers good deals for its prime location on Saint-Paul, easily Old Montreal's nicest shopping street, so the guests are astute travelers with taste.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Mar. 2026
-
When asked by the Miami Herald about potential conflicts of interest and transparency concerns between her private companies and the charter school contracts she’s received, Erika Donalds described herself as simply an astute businesswoman.—
Claire Heddles,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Perspicacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perspicacious. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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