Wisdom
Deep, earned understanding
Wisdom is the capacity for sound judgment drawn from experience and reflection.
It differs from mere knowledge—wisdom involves knowing how to apply what you've learned: With age comes wisdom.
The word often implies moral insight or practical understanding about life: the wisdom of the ancients, conventional wisdom.
A wisdom tooth is one of four molars that emerge in early adulthood, supposedly when a person has gained some wisdom.
Understood facts and skills
- understandingMental comprehension of something
- insightDeep perceptive understanding
- enlightenmentProfound spiritual awakening
- truthAccordance with reality
discernment · contemplation · reflection · Socrates · Confucius · Aristotle · sage · philosopher
Reasoned decision-making capacity
- experiencePractical knowledge from life
- prudenceCareful, wise judgment
- common senseNative practical judgment
- foresightAbility to anticipate futures
decision-making · advice · counsel · guidance · pragmatism · street smarts · life lessons · hindsight
Profound spiritual awakening
- awakeningReturn to consciousness
- transcendenceSurpassing usual limits
- nirvanaRelease from cyclical existence
- satoriSudden spiritual awakening
bodhi · meditation · scripture · guru · shaman · oracle · mystic · revelation
Peaceable Hebrew name
- AthenaGreek wisdom deity
- owlNocturnal feathered predator
- MinervaRoman wisdom goddess
- ThothEgyptian god of wisdom
Saraswati · Ganesh · Odin · Metis · magi · Laozi · Buddha · oracle
Predecessor in lineage
- grandmotherMother of a parent
- grandfatherFather's or mother's father
- croneWizened old woman
- patriarchMale head of family
matriarch · mentor · council · tradition · lineage · storytelling · oral history · respect
knowledge
Understood facts and skills
- understandingMental comprehension of something
- insightDeep perceptive understanding
- enlightenmentProfound spiritual awakening
truth · discernment · contemplation · reflection · Socrates · Confucius · Aristotle · sage · philosopher · reasoning
judgment
Reasoned decision-making capacity
- experiencePractical knowledge from life
- prudenceCareful, wise judgment
- common senseNative practical judgment
foresight · decision-making · advice · counsel · guidance · pragmatism · street smarts · life lessons · hindsight · maturity
enlightenment
Profound spiritual awakening
- awakeningReturn to consciousness
- transcendenceSurpassing usual limits
- nirvanaRelease from cyclical existence
satori · bodhi · meditation · scripture · guru · shaman · oracle · mystic · revelation · divine
Solomon
Peaceable Hebrew name
Thoth · Saraswati · Ganesh · Odin · Metis · magi · Laozi · Buddha · oracle · sphinx
ancestor
Predecessor in lineage
- grandmotherMother of a parent
- grandfatherFather's or mother's father
- croneWizened old woman
patriarch · matriarch · mentor · council · tradition · lineage · storytelling · oral history · respect · veneration
- RavenclawBlue, Luna Lovegood
- personificationsMother Nature, Father Time, Grim Reaper, Lady Luck, Lady Justice
Wisdomignorance
Absence of knowledge
foolishness · stupidity · folly · unknowing · cluelessness
Wisdomfoolishness
Unwise conduct
folly · imprudence · recklessness · rashness · indiscretion
Wisdomnaivety
Innocent lack of experience
inexperience · immaturity · childishness · greenness · innocence
- wisdom teethFinal molars to erupt
- wisdom toothLate-erupting back molar
- timeless wisdomKnowledge that stays relevant forever
- words of wisdom
- conventional wisdomGenerally accepted beliefs
- folk wisdomTraditional communal knowledge
wise, wisely, wiser, wisest, unwise, unwisely, wizard, wizardry, wits