INGENUITY

ingenuity, ingeniousness, cleverness

(noun) the property of being ingenious; “a plot of great ingenuity”; “the cleverness of its design”

inventiveness, ingeniousness, ingenuity, cleverness

(noun) the power of creative imagination

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

ingenuity (usually uncountable, plural ingenuities)

The ability to solve difficult problems, often in original, clever, and inventive ways.

(now rare) Ingenuousness; honesty, straightforwardness

Anagrams

• genuinity

Source: Wiktionary


In`ge*nu"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. ingenuitas ingenuousness: cf. F. ingénuité. See Ingenuous.]

1. The quality or power of ready invention; quickness or acuteness in forming new combinations; ingeniousness; skill in devising or combining. All the means which human ingenuity has contrived. Blair.

2. Curiousness, or cleverness in design or contrivance; as, the ingenuity of a plan, or of mechanism. He gives . . . To artist ingenuity and skill. Cowper.

3. Openness of heat; ingeniuousness. [Obs.] The stings and remores of natural ingenuity, a principle that men scarcely ever shake off, as long as they carry anything of human nature about them. South.

Syn.

– Inventiveness; ingeniousness; skill; cunning; cleverness; genius.

– Ingenuity, Cleverness. Ingenuity is a form of genius, and cleverness of talent. The former implies invention, the letter a peculiar dexterity and readiness of execution. Sir James Mackintosh remarks that the English overdo in the use of the word clever and cleverness, applying them loosely to almost every form of intellectual ability.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

23 June 2025

PEOPLE

(noun) members of a family line; “his people have been farmers for generations”; “are your people still alive?”


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Coffee Trivia

Decaffeinated coffee is not caffeine-free. Studies from the National Institute of Health (US) have shown that virtually all decaf coffee types contain caffeine. A 236-ml (8-oz) cup of decaf coffee contains up to 7 mg of caffeine, whereas a regular cup provided 70-140 mg.

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