WISE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does Wise mean? 

• WISE (noun)
  The noun WISE has 3 senses:

1. a way of doing or being

2. United States Jewish leader (born in Hungary) (1874-1949)

3. United States religious leader (born in Bohemia) who united reform Jewish organizations in the United States (1819-1900)

  Familiarity information: WISE used as a noun is uncommon.

• WISE (adjective)
  The adjective WISE has 4 senses:

1. having or prompted by wisdom or discernment

2. marked by the exercise of good judgment or common sense in practical matters

3. evidencing the possession of inside information

4. improperly forward or bold

  Familiarity information: WISE used as an adjective is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WISE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A way of doing or being

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Context example:

in this wise

Hypernyms ("wise" is a kind of...):

fashion; manner; mode; style; way (how something is done or how it happens)

Sense 2

Meaning:

United States Jewish leader (born in Hungary) (1874-1949)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

Stephen Samuel Wise; Wise

Instance hypernyms:

religious leader (leader of a religious order)

Sense 3

Meaning:

United States religious leader (born in Bohemia) who united reform Jewish organizations in the United States (1819-1900)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

Isaac Mayer Wise; Wise

Instance hypernyms:

religious leader (leader of a religious order)

• WISE (adjective)

Comparative: wiser   
Superlative: wisest   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Having or prompted by wisdom or discernment

Context example:

a wise and perceptive comment

Similar:

all-knowing; omniscient (infinitely wise)

perspicacious; sagacious; sapient (acutely insightful and wise)

owlish (resembling an owl; solemn and wise in appearance)

sapiential (characterized by wisdom, especially the wisdom of God)

sage (having wisdom that comes with age and experience)

Also:

advisable (worthy of being recommended or suggested; prudent or wise)

advised; well-advised (having the benefit of careful prior consideration or counsel)

politic (marked by artful prudence, expedience, and shrewdness)

prudent (careful and sensible; marked by sound judgment)

Antonym:

foolish (devoid of good sense or judgment)

Derivation:

wiseness (the trait of utilizing knowledge and experience with common sense and insight)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Marked by the exercise of good judgment or common sense in practical matters

Synonyms:

heady; judicious; wise

Context example:

a wise decision

Similar:

prudent (careful and sensible; marked by sound judgment)

Derivation:

wiseness (the quality of being prudent and sensible)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Evidencing the possession of inside information

Synonyms:

knowing; wise; wise to

Similar:

informed (having much knowledge or education)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Improperly forward or bold

Synonyms:

fresh; impertinent; impudent; overbold; sassy; saucy; smart; wise

Context example:

Don't get wise with me!

Similar:

forward (used of temperament or behavior; lacking restraint or modesty)

 Context examples 

He listened to me with great attention, and made very wise observations on all I spoke.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

You would be wise to make your purchase in January.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

"It's very nice of him to send you flowers, isn't it?" said Annie, looking wise about nothing.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

"And Hume's mind was the same as yours, with this difference: he was wise enough to admit there was no answering Berkeley."

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

I crawled about the lawn with an August sun on my back, but I got up at the end of an hour no wiser than before.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"Because you are wise and powerful, and no one else can help me," answered the Scarecrow.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

And a wise man he must have been to think so!

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

You are more nice than wise.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

If you can't control your diabetes with wise food choices and physical activity, you may need diabetes medicines.

(Diabetes Medicines, NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)

A substance intended for administration in a drop-wise fashion.

(Drop Dosage Form, NCI Thesaurus)