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Added 29 September 2026

wisdom

/ˈwɪzdəm/ noun

In Latin: sagacitas, sapientia Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about wisdom at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

An element of personal character that enables one to distinguish the wise from the unwise.
A piece of wise advice.
The discretionary use of knowledge for the greatest good.

Origin

From Middle English wisdom, from Old English wīsdōm (“wisdom”), from Proto-West Germanic *wīsadōm, from Proto-Germanic *wīsadōmaz (“wisdom”), corresponding to wise + -dom. Cognate with Scots wisdom, wysdom (“wisdom”), West Frisian wiisdom (“wisdom”), Dutch wijsdom (“wisdom”), German Weistum (“legal sentence”), Danish/Norwegian/Swedish visdom (“wisdom”), Icelandic vísdómur (“wisdom”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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