The Meaning of Wisdom: What It Is and How To Use It

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Who has more wisdom, a small child or an octogenarian? What is the difference between wisdom and intelligence? Do you know the definition of wisdom?

In this article, we will define the word wisdom and teach you how to use it in a sentence. Then, we will explore how to say the word wisdom in other languages, as well as alternate terms for the word wisdom. 

By the end of this article, you will have a lot of wisdom about the word wisdom!

What Does Wisdom Mean?

According to Dictionary, the word wisdom is a noun that refers to the quality of being wise and having great judgment and sagacity. Wisdom can also refer to the scholarly aspects of knowledge or wise acts. The pronunciation of wisdom is ˈwɪzdəm.

What Is the Etymology of Wisdom?

The word wisdom has been around for a very long time, since before the year 900 CE! This term first entered the English language in Middle English and came from the Old English wīsdōm. This term has its origins in the German weistum and Old Norse visdomr.

How Can We Use Wisdom in a Sentence?

Below, you will find several example sentences which contain examples of wisdom. While it is perfectly fine to know what a word means, it is even more important to know how to use it in a sentence. 

You might have the wisdom to know the definition of this word but without the practical knowledge of how to apply it in daily life, knowing this definition is not very useful! After you read through these example sentences, try to come up with your own examples of wisdom!

Example #1

God shows great wisdom throughout the Old Testament. In Sunday school, we learned all about His infinite wisdom, which guides us. 

Example #2

The principal thought that the teachers at the school should only be passing along conventional wisdom to their students, but one teacher sought to give her students good judgment and critical thinking skills, not just knowledge of formulas or vocabulary.

Example #3

After the minor car accident, the young woman was panicking since her parents weren’t picking up the phone. However, the wise man who witnessed the accident passed along some wisdom and good sense, helping her with her next course of action.

Example #4

When the young boy learned that he would have to get his wisdom tooth, he wondered if this would make him incapable of becoming a wise person. However, his dentist reassured him this was not the case. 

Example #5

After her first pet passed away, her father gave her some words of wisdom to try and make her feel better. He told her that while animals are only in our lives for a short time, each one of them makes an impression on us and that she gave her dog a great, full life. 

What Are Translations of Wisdom?

If you are going to be visiting a country where English is not the primary language, you should learn how to say different words and phrases in that country’s native language. Using this list of translations of wisdom from Nice Translator, you can add the word wisdom to your vocabulary!

Should you plan to study abroad in another country, or if you have business matters to attend to abroad, learning how to say the word wisdom in another language can be very helpful. How many of these translations of wisdom do you already know?

  • Slovak: múdrosť
  • Thai: ภูมิปัญญา
  • Serbian: мудрост
  • Japanese: 知恵
  • Polish: mądrość
  • Filipino: karunungan
  • Urdu: حکمت
  • French: sagesse
  • Bengali: জ্ঞান
  • Catalan: saviesa
  • Ukrainian: мудрість
  • Bulgarian: мъдрост
  • Finnish: viisaus
  • Kannada: ಬುದ್ಧಿವಂತಿಕೆ
  • Norwegian: visdom
  • Telugu: జ్ఞానం
  • Chinese (PRC): 智慧
  • German: Weisheit
  • Tamil: ஞானம்
  • Latvian: gudrība
  • Romanian: înţelepciune
  • Russian: мудрость
  • Swahili: Hekima
  • Lithuanian: Išmintis
  • Italian: saggezza
  • Portuguese (Brazil): sabedoria
  • Greek: σοφία
  • Malay: kebijaksanaan
  • Indonesian: kebijaksanaan
  • Korean: 지혜
  • Hindi: बुद्धि
  • Arabic: حكمة
  • Estonian: tarkus
  • Danish: visdom
  • Czech: moudrost
  • Turkish: bilgelik
  • Amharic: ጥበብ
  • Welsh: doethineb
  • Hebrew: חוכמה
  • Vietnamese: sự khôn ngoan
  • Portuguese (Portugal): sabedoria
  • Slovenian: modrost
  • Dutch: wijsheid
  • Gujarati: શાણપણ
  • Icelandic: viska
  • Marathi: शहाणपण
  • Chinese (Taiwan): 智慧
  • Swedish: visdom
  • Croatian: mudrost
  • Spanish: sabiduría
  • Basque: jakituria
  • Malayalam: അറിവ്
  • Hungarian: bölcsesség

What Are Synonyms of Wisdom?

Wisdom has a positive connotation. This word implies a high level of knowledge and sagacity. However, what if you are looking for a word to describe someone who has a lot of knowledge but who is snobby about their great intelligence? 

For this, you can turn to this list of synonyms of wisdom from Power Thesaurus. See if you can determine which synonyms of wisdom have which type of connotation: positive, negative, or neutral. 

  • acumen
  • advisability
  • astuteness
  • brain
  • brains
  • cleverness
  • common sense
  • comprehension
  • discernment
  • discretion
  • enlightenment
  • erudition
  • good judgment
  • good sense
  • gumption
  • horse sense
  • information
  • insight
  • intellect
  • intelligence
  • judgment
  • judiciousness
  • knowledge
  • learning
  • logic
  • lore
  • perception
  • perspicacity
  • philosophy
  • profundity
  • prudence
  • rationality
  • reason
  • sagacity
  • sageness
  • sanity
  • sapience
  • savvy
  • scholarship
  • science
  • sense
  • sensible
  • shrewdness
  • soundness
  • understanding
  • wise
  • wit

What Are Antonyms of Wisdom?

If someone is unintelligent or not wise, they have the opposite of wisdom. For several words and phrases that are antonyms of wisdom, turn to this list from Power Thesaurus.

  • absurdity
  • brainlessness
  • craziness
  • denseness
  • disability to learn
  • dopiness
  • dullness
  • dumb move
  • fatuity
  • folly
  • foolishness
  • general learning disability
  • gullibility
  • idiocy
  • ignorance
  • incomprehension
  • inexperience
  • injudiciousness
  • insanity
  • intellectual disability
  • island of ignorance
  • lack of knowledge
  • lack of understanding
  • learning difference
  • learning difficulty
  • learning disability
  • learning disorder
  • learning problems
  • lunacy
  • madness
  • mindlessness
  • misconception
  • mistake
  • nonsense
  • obtuseness
  • sea of ignorance
  • senselessness
  • silliness
  • stupidity

Conclusion

Wisdom means great knowledge or sagacity. Do you know anyone who is particularly wise?

Sources:

Wisdom synonyms – 1 095 Words and Phrases for Wisdom | Power Thesaurus 

Wisdom antonyms – 384 Opposites of Wisdom | Power Thesaurus 

Wisdom Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com 

Wisdom | Nice Translator