wit (redirected from collecting wits)

wit ¹  (wt)

n.

1. The natural ability to perceive and understand; intelligence.

2.

a. Keenness and quickness of perception or discernment; ingenuity. Often used in the plural: living by one's wits.

b. wits Sound mental faculties; sanity: scared out of my wits.

3.

a. The ability to perceive and express in an ingeniously humorous manner the relationship between seemingly incongruous or disparate things.

b. One noted for this ability, especially one skilled in repartee.

c. A person of exceptional intelligence.

Idioms:

at (one's) wits' end

At the limit of one's mental resources; utterly at a loss.

have/keep (one's) wits about (one)

To remain alert or calm, especially in a crisis.

---

[Middle English, from Old English; see weid- in Indo-European roots.]

Synonyms: wit¹, humor, repartee, sarcasm, irony
These nouns denote forms of expression that elicit amusement or laughter. Wit implies intellectual keenness and the ability to perceive and express in a diverting way analogies between dissimilar things: "Wit has truth in it; wisecracking is simply calisthenics with words" (Dorothy Parker).
Humor suggests the faculty of recognizing what is amusing, comical, incongruous, or absurd: "Man's sense of humor seems to be in inverse proportion to the gravity of his profession" (Mary Roberts Rinehart).
Repartee implies a facility for answering swiftly and cleverly: "framing comments ... that would be sure to sting and yet leave no opening for repartee" (H.G. Wells).
Sarcasm is a form of caustic wit intended to wound or ridicule another: "[His] tone seemed as if meant to be kind and soothing, but yet had a bitterness of sarcasm in it" (Nathaniel Hawthorne).
Irony is a form of expression in which an intended meaning is the opposite of the literal meaning of the words used: "A drayman in a passion [a rage] calls out, 'You are a pretty fellow,' without suspecting that he is uttering irony" (Thomas Macaulay). See Also Synonyms at mind.

---

wit ²  (wt)

v. wist (wst), wit·ting (wtng), first and third person singular present tense wot (wt) Archaic

v.tr.

To be or become aware of; learn.

v.intr.

To know.

Idiom:

to wit

That is to say; namely.

---

[Middle English, from Old English witan; see weid- in Indo-European roots.]

---

wit¹

n

1. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) the talent or quality of using unexpected associations between contrasting or disparate words or ideas to make a clever humorous effect

2. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) speech or writing showing this quality

3. (Literary & Literary Critical Terms) a person possessing, showing, or noted for such an ability, esp in repartee

4. practical intelligence (esp in the phrase have the wit to)

5. Scot and northern English dialect information or knowledge (esp in the phrase get wit of)

6. Archaic mental capacity or a person possessing it

7. Obsolete the mind or memory See also wits

[Old English witt; related to Old Saxon giwitt, Old High German wizzi (German Witz), Old Norse vit, Gothic witi. See wit²]

---

wit²

vb

Archaic to be or become aware of (something)

adv

(Law)

to wit that is to say; namely (used to introduce statements, as in legal documents)

[Old English witan; related to Old High German wizzan (German wissen), Old Norse vita, Latin vidēre to see]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	wit - a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter humor, witticism, wittiness, humour subject matter, content, message, substance - what a communication that is about something is about jeu d'esprit - a witty comment or writing bon mot, mot - a clever remark esprit de l'escalier - a witty remark that occurs to you too late pungency, bite - wit having a sharp and caustic quality; "he commented with typical pungency"; "the bite of satire" caustic remark, irony, sarcasm, satire - witty language used to convey insults or scorn; "he used sarcasm to upset his opponent"; "irony is wasted on the stupid"; "Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own"--Jonathan Swift repartee - adroitness and cleverness in reply gag, jape, jest, joke, laugh - a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter; "he told a very funny joke"; "he knows a million gags"; "thanks for the laugh"; "he laughed unpleasantly at his own jest"; "even a schoolboy's jape is supposed to have some ascertainable point" caricature, impersonation, imitation - a representation of a person that is exaggerated for comic effect cartoon, sketch - a humorous or satirical drawing published in a newspaper or magazine fun, sport, play - verbal wit or mockery (often at another's expense but not to be taken seriously); "he became a figure of fun"; "he said it in sport" ribaldry - ribald humor topper - an exceedingly good witticism that surpasses all that have gone before libation - (facetious) a serving of an alcoholic beverage roaster - a harsh or humorous critic (sometimes intended as a facetious compliment); "the honoree gave his roasters as good as he got"
	2.	wit - mental ability; "he's got plenty of brains but no common sense" brainpower, learning ability, mental capacity, mentality, brain intelligence - the ability to comprehend; to understand and profit from experience
	3.	wit - a witty amusing person who makes jokes wag, card colloquialism - a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech humorist, humourist - someone who acts speaks or writes in an amusing way

---

wit

noun

1. humour, fun, quips, banter, puns, pleasantry, repartee, wordplay, levity, witticisms, badinage, jocularity, facetiousness, drollery, raillery, waggishness, wittiness Bill was known for his biting wit.
humour gravity, seriousness, sobriety, solemnity, dullness, humourlessness

2. humorist, card (informal), comedian, wag, joker, dag (N.Z. informal), punster, farceur (French), epigrammatist a man who fancied himself as a great wit

3. (often plural) cleverness, mind, reason, understanding, sense, brains, smarts (slang, chiefly U.S.), judgment, perception, wisdom, insight, common sense, intellect, comprehension, ingenuity, acumen, nous (Brit. slang), discernment, practical intelligence The information is there for anyone with the wit to use it.
cleverness ignorance, folly, stupidity, foolishness, silliness, obtuseness, lack of perception

at your wits' end in despair, lost, stuck (informal), stumped, baffled, bewildered, at a loss, at the end of your tether I just can't think what to do - I'm at my wits' end.

Quotations
"True wit is nature to advantage dress'd,"
"What oft was thought, but ne'er so well expressed" [Alexander Pope An Essay on Criticism]
"Brevity is the soul of wit" [William Shakespeare Hamlet]
"Next to being witty yourself, the best thing is being able to quote another's wit" [Christian N. Bovee]
"Wit is the epitaph of an emotion" [Friedrich Nietzsche Menschliches, Allzumenschliches]

Translations

wit¹ [wɪt] N

1. (= understanding) → inteligencia f
a battle of wits → una contienda entre dos inteligencias
to collect one's wits → reconcentrarse
to be at one's wits' end → no saber qué hacer, estar desesperado
to gather one's wits → reconcentrarse
to have or keep one's wits about one → no perder la cabeza
he hadn't the wit to see that → no tenía bastante inteligencia para comprender que ...
to live by one's wits → vivir del cuento
to be out of one's wits → estar fuera de sí
to be frightened or scared out of one's wits → estar profundamente asustado
to sharpen one's wits → aguzar el ingenio, despabilarse
to use one's wits → usar su sentido común

2. (= humour, wittiness) → ingenio m, agudeza f
in a flash of wit he said → en un golpe de ingenio dijo ...
to have a ready wit → ser ingenioso
the wit and wisdom of Joe Soap → las agudezas y sabiduría de Joe Soap
a story told without wit → un cuento narrado sin gracia

3. (= person) → persona f ingeniosa (Hist) → ingenio m
an Elizabethan wit → un ingenio de la época isabelina

---

wit² [wɪt] N (frm) (also Jur) to wit → a saber ..., esto es ...

---

wit [ˈwɪt]

n

(= wittiness) → esprit m
The girl laughed at his wit
BUT La fille riait de ses traits d'esprits.
with great wit → avec beaucoup d'esprit

(= witty man) → homme m d'esprit (= witty woman) → femme f d'esprit

(= intelligence) → présence f d'esprit
to have the wit to do sth → avoir la présence d'esprit de faire qch

to wit adv → à savoir wits

npl

(= ability to think quickly) → tête f
to use one's wits to do sth → se servir de sa tête pour faire qch
to have one's wits about one → avoir toute sa tête
to keep one's wits about one → garder la tête sur les épaules
to pit one's wits against sb → rivaliser d'esprit avec qn

to be at one's wits' end → ne plus savoir que faire

---

wit¹

vi (old Jur) to wit → nämlich, und zwar

---

wit²

n

(= understanding) → Verstand m; beyond the wit of man → über den menschlichen Verstand or Horizont hinaus; a battle of wits → ein geistiges Kräftemessen; to be at one’s wits’ end → am Ende seiner Weisheit sein, mit seinem Latein am Ende sein (hum inf); I was at my wits’ end (to find a solution) → ich wusste mir keinen Rat or Ausweg mehr(, wie ich eine Lösung finden könnte); to drive somebody out of his wits → jdn um seinen Verstand bringen; to lose one’s wits → den or seinen Verstand verlieren; to collect one’s wits → seine fünf Sinne (wieder) zusammennehmen; to frighten or scare somebody out of his wits → jdn zu Tode erschrecken; to be frightened or scared out of one’s wits → zu Tode erschreckt sein; to have or keep one’s wits about one → seine (fünf) Sinne zusammen- or beisammenhaben, einen klaren Kopf haben; to sharpen one’s wits → seinen Verstand schärfen; to use one’s wits → seinen Verstand gebrauchen, sein Köpfchen or seinen Grips anstrengen (inf); to live by or on one’s wits → sich schlau or klug durchs Leben schlagen

(= humour, wittiness) → Geist m, → Witz m; full of wit → geistreich; the book is full of wit → es ist sehr viel Geistreiches in dem Buch

(= person) → geistreicher Kopf

---

wit [wɪt] n

a. (understanding, gen pl) → intelligenza
native wit → buon senso
to be at one's wits' end → avere esaurito tutte le risorse, non sapere più che fare
to have or keep one's wits about one → avere presenza di spirito
use your wits! → usa il cervello!
to live by one's wits → vivere di espedienti
to collect one's wits → rimettersi in sesto
to be frightened or scared out of one's wits → essere spaventato/a a morte

b. (humour, wittiness) → spirito, arguzia

c. (person) → persona arguta, bello spirito

d. (namely) to wit → cioè

---

wit [wɪt] n

a. (understanding, gen pl) → intelligenza
native wit → buon senso
to be at one's wits' end → avere esaurito tutte le risorse, non sapere più che fare
to have or keep one's wits about one → avere presenza di spirito
use your wits! → usa il cervello!
to live by one's wits → vivere di espedienti
to collect one's wits → rimettersi in sesto
to be frightened or scared out of one's wits → essere spaventato/a a morte

b. (humour, wittiness) → spirito, arguzia

c. (person) → persona arguta, bello spirito

d. (namely) to wit → cioè

---

wit

n wit [wit]

1 humour; the ability to express oneself in an amusing way His plays are full of wit; I admire his wit. humor مِزاج مَرِح، خِفَّة دَم духовитост humor, vtipnost vid der Witz πνεύμα, χιούμορ agudeza, ingenio, chispa, gracia vaimukus لطافت طبع nokkeluus esprit שְׁנִינוּת हाजिर-जवाबी humor, duhovitost szellemesség humor fyndni, hnyttni spirito 機知 유머, 위트 sąmojis humors; asprātība bersemangat; bijak dan lucu; pendapat yang tajam spitsheid vidd, vittighet, åndfullhet dowcip graça spirit остроумие humor, vtipnosť, duchaplnosť duhovitost duhovitost slagfärdighet แสดงความตลกขบขัน nükte, espri 風趣 дотепність ظرافت sự hóm hỉnh 幽默妙语

2 a person who expresses himself in a humorous way, tells jokes etc He's a great wit. humoristiese persoon شَخْص مَشْهور بِنكاتِه وتَعْليقاتِه الظَّريفَه духовит човек vtipný člověk vittigt hoved witziger Kopf πνευματώδης άνθρωπος, χιουμορίστας persona salada, chistoso, ingenioso naljahammas, lõuapoolik بذله گويى vitsiniekka homme, femme d'esprit שָׁנוּן हाजिर-जवाब šaljivdžija szellemes ember orang humoris orðheppinn maður (persona spiritosa) 機知に富んだ人 기지가 풍부한 사람 humoristas asprātis; atjautīgs cilvēks bijak dalam berjenaka gevat iemand slagferdig person, vittig hode dowcipniś humorista om inte­ligent остроумный человек vtipný človek duhovitež duhovit čovek kvickhuvud, spirituell person ผู้มีเชาว์ปัญญา nüktedan 風趣的人 дотепник ظریف الطبع شخص người hóm hỉnh 富于幽默感的人

3 common sense, inventiveness etc He did not have the wit to defend himself. gesonde verstand بَديهَه، فِطْنَه разум důvtip; inteligence det, der skal til geistige Fähigkeit εξυπνάδα, ευστροφία juicio, inteligencia taip هوش neuvokkuus bon sens הֲבָנָה, תוֹבָנָה बुद्धि zdrav razum leleményesség akal skynsemi buon senso 分別 재능 nuovoka, protas atjautība; attapība; apķērība kecerdasan otak verstand vett rozum senso bun simţ ум; сообразительность dôvtip; inteligencia zdrav razum razboritost vett, förstånd ความมีไหวพริบ anlayış, akıl, zekâ 常識，應變能力 розум سمجھ trí thông minh 创造性

adj witless

crazy, stupid etc. dom غَبي،أخْرَق، عَديم الذَّكاء глупав hloupý tåbelig geistlos άμυαλος estúpido kohtlane احمق typerä stupide טִיפֵּש नासमझ lud, glup ostoba bodoh vitlaus, heimskur sciocco 愚かな 어리석은 kvailas, neprotingas bez prāta; stulbs; truls bodoh; gila hersenloos gal, uten vett, tåpelig tępy estúpido stupid безмозглый hlúpy neduhovit glup enfaldig, dum โง่ aptal, akılsız 愚蠢的 безглуздий, нерозумний بے وقوف ngốc ngếch 愚蠢的

-witted

having understanding or intelligence of a certain kind quick-/sharp-witted. slim, kundig ذو ذكاءٍ -умен ...ducha (snar-)rådig; (skarp-)sindig; (slag-)færdig ....-denkend με μυαλό (ως β΄ συνθ.) de comprensión (...) -aruline هوش -älyinen à l'esprit (...) מְהִיר תְּפִיסָה हाजिर-जवाब -razuman vmilyen észjárású berakal -gáfaður (d'ingegno...) 知恵が－の 재주가 있는 -proto apķērīgs/neapķērīgs cepat menangkap dengan cepat van begrip (snar)-rådig, (skarp)-sindig, (slag)-ferdig o... dowcipie/rozumie de compreensão (rápida, etc.) cu spi­rit... ум -vtipný ki je (...) pameti -uman -tänkt, -sinnig ซึ่งมีสติปัญญา ... akıllı, zekî ...智能的 той, що з певним розумом دانشمند có trí óc ...智能的

n witticism [-sizəm]

a witty remark etc. kwinkslag مُلْحَه، لَطيفَه духовита забележка duchaplnost vittighed witzige Bemerkung ευφυολόγημα, έξυπνη παρατήρηση ocurrencia, agudeza, salida teravmeelsus عاقل sukkeluus mot d'esprit הֶעָרָה שְׁנוּנָה मजेदार duhovita opaska szellemes megjegyzés komentar lucu fyndni, hnyttni arguzia しゃれ 경구, 명언 sąmojinga pastaba, sąmojis asprātība kata-kata yang penuh kejenakaan gevatte opmerking vittighet, åndfullhet dowcipne powiedzenie chiste vorbă de duh остроумное замечание duchaplnosť duhovita opazka dosetka kvickhet คำคม şaka, espri, nükte 風趣的話，妙語 дотеп بذلہ سنجی nhận xét dí dỏm 打趣话，妙语

adj witty

clever and amusing a witty person; witty remarks. humoristiese فَكِه، ظَريف ، حاضِر البديهَه остроумен vtipný vittig witzig πνευματώδης ingenioso, agudo, salado, gracioso teravmeelne با هوش nokkela spirituel שָנוּן हाजिर-जवाबी duhovit szellemes pintar dan lucu fyndinn, hnyttinn spiritoso 機知に富んだ 기지가 있는 sąmojingas asprātīgs penuh jenaka; cerdas dan pandai berjenaka gevat slagferdig, vittig, åndfull dowcipny espirituoso spiritual остроумный vtipný duhovit dosetljiv kvick, slagfärdig, spirituell ซึ่งใช้คำพูดอย่างมีไหวพริบ nükteli, hazır cevap 機智風趣的 дотепний چالاک اور بذلہ سنج hóm hỉnh 诙谐的

adv wittily

humoristies بِظَرافَه، بِفُكاهَه остроумно vtipně vittigt witzig με χιούμορ ingeniosamente teravmeelselt هوشمندانه nokkelasti avec beaucoup d'esprit בִּשנִינוּת हाजिर-जवाबी के साथ duhovito szellemesen secara pintar hnyttilega in maniera spiritosa 面白おかしく 재치 있게 sąmojingai asprātīgi secara sedar; dgn sengaja gevat slagferdig, vittig, åndfullt dowcipnie com espírito spiritual; cu spirit остроумно vtipne duhovito dosetljivo kvickt, slagfärdigt, spirituellt โดยใช้คำพูดอย่างมีไหวพริบ nükteli, zekîce, hazırcevaplılıkla 情趣橫溢地 дотепно چالاکی سے một cách hóm hỉnh 情趣横溢地

n wittiness

humoristiesheid فُكاهَه، ظَرافَه، بديهَةٍ حاضِرَه остроумие vtipnost vid; slagfærdighed die Witzigkeit πνεύμα ingenio, agudeza teravmeelsus هوشمند älykkyys humour שְׁנִינוּת हाजिर-जवाबी duhovitost szellemesség kepintaran hnyttni, fyndni spirito 才知 재치 있음, 재기 발랄함 sąmojingumas asprātīgums; apķērīgums tidak sengaja gevatheid vidd, slagferdighet dowcip humor umor остроумие vtipnosť duhovitost dosetljivost kvickhet, slagfärdighet, spiritualitet การใช้คำพูดอย่างมีไหวพริบ zekâ, hazır cevaplılık 機敏 дотепність بذلہ سنجی tính chất hóm hỉnh 机敏

at one's wits' end

utterly confused and desperate. desperaat, verward في حَيْرَةٍ من أمْرِه объркан и отчаян s rozumem v koncích ikke ane sine levende råd am Ende seiner Weisheit σε απόγνωση, σε πλήρη σύγχυση desesperado tarkus on otsas گیج شده sietokyvyn rajoilla à bout de ressources אוֹבֵד עֵצוֹת बहुत हताश zbunjen, očajan megáll az esze putus asa vita ekki sitt rjúkandi ráð perplesso 途方にくれて 난처하여 visiškai pasimetęs nezināt, ko iesākt; bez padoma keliru dan kecewa; bingung ten einde raad ikke vite sin arme råd w kropce desvairado la capătul puterilor в отчаянии s rozumom v koncoch pri kraju s pametjo zbunjen inte veta varken ut eller in จนปัญญา apışıp kalmış, ne yapacağını şaşırmış 江郎才盡，不知所措 зніяковілий ایسی حالت جس میں عقل کام نہ کرے vô phương 智穷计尽

keep one's wits about one

to be cautious, alert and watchful. versigtig wees يَكونُ حَذِرا أو مُحْتَرِسا внимавам vzít rozum do hrsti holde hovedet koldt einen klaren Kopf behalten έχω τα μάτια μου δεκατέσσερα estar despabilado, no perder la cabeza terane olema مراقب یکی بودن olla varuillaan rester attentif לְהִישָאֵר דָרוּך सतर्क रहना biti pozoran eszénél van hati-hati halda ró sinni og skÿrri hugsun (stare all'erta) 抜け目ない 수완이 좋다 neprarasti galvos būt modram; saņemt visus prātus peka; tajam zijn verstand bij elkaar houden holde hodet kaldt, passe på som en smed być czujnym, nie w ciemię bitym ficar alerta a fi precaut не растеряться vziať rozum do hrsti biti buden biti oprezan hålla huvudet kallt รอบคอบ uyanık olmak, paniğe kapılmamak 保持警覺 не розгубитися چوکس ہونا cảnh giác 保持警觉

live by one's wits

to live by cunning rather than by hard work. as jy nie sterk is nie, moet jy slim wees يَكْسَب رِزْقَه بالمَكْر прехранвам се с хитрини živit se hlavou leve af at snyde folk sich durch's Leben schlagen ζω με κομπίνες vivir del cuento hõlbuelu elama, nihverdama زیرکانه زندگی کردن luottaa nokkeluuteensa vivre d'expédients לְהִתפַּרנֵס בְּצוּרָה עַרמוּמִית मेहनत की जगह अकल की कमाई खाना živjeti od pameti máról-holnapra él hidup dengan kelicikan bjarga sér á klókindum (vivere di espedienti) 抜け目のなさで生きる 기지로 이럭저럭 살아가다 suktis, gudrumu pelnytis duoną būt (dzīvē) apsviedīgam; pamanīties hidup dengan kepintaran otak op bijdehande manier aan de kost komen leve av å lure folk żyć z kombinowania viver de expedientes a trăi de pe o zi pe alta жить на сомнительные доходы žiť z vlastnej šikovnosti živeti od svoje prebrisanosti preživljavati lukavstvom leva på sin intelligens หาเงินอย่างทุจริต açık gözlülükle geçinmek 靠耍手段過日子 викручуватися طرح طرح کی چالاکیوں سے روزی کمانا sống nhờ sự xảo quyệt 靠耍手腕过日子

(frighten/scare) out of one's wits

(to frighten) (almost) to the point of madness The sight of the gun in his hand scared me out of my wits. asvaal skrik يَدْفَعُ إلى الجُنون، يُفْقِدُه عَقْلَه обезумявам от страх vyděsit k smrti skræmme fra vid og sans zu Tode erschrecken τρελαίνομαι, τρομάζω πάρα πολύ estar muerto de miedo poolsurnuks ehmatama از هوش رفتن säikäyttää perinpohjaisesti faire une peur bleue (à) לְהַפחִיד עַד מָווֶת दहशत में आना prestrašiti do ludila halálra rémül vmitől membuat sangat takut gera/vera viti sÿnu fjær (spaventare molto) 気も狂うほど 두려워서 꼼짝 못하게 하다 mirtinai ką (išgąsdinti) pārbiedēt līdz nāvei hilang akal gek, buiten zichzelf skremme vettet av napędzić stracha dar um susto dos diabos a speria de moarte (чуть не) до смерти (напугать) vystrašiť na smrť na smrt prestrašiti prestrašiti skrämma vettet ur ทำให้กลัว ödünü patlatmak 讓人(幾乎)嚇破膽 до смерті خوف زدہ ہونا sợ hết hồn 不知所措

---

wit → فِطْنَة důvtip vid geistige Wendigkeit ευστροφία ingenio nokkeluus esprit domišljatost arguzia 機知 재치 scherpzinnigheid vett dowcip perspicácia остроумие intellekt คำพูดหรือข้อเขียนที่แสดงเชาน์ปัญญา nükte sự hóm hỉnh 智力