Word forms: comparative cleverer, superlative cleverest
1. adjective
Someone who is clever is intelligent and able to understand things easily or plan things well.
He's a very clever man.
My sister was always a lot cleverer than I was.
Her mother was clever at many things.
cleverlyadverb
She would cleverly pick up on what I said.
clevernessuncountable noun
Her cleverness seems to get in the way of her emotions.
Synonyms: intelligence, sense, brains, wit More Synonyms of clever
Synonyms: shrewdness, sharpness, resourcefulness, canniness More Synonyms of clever
Synonyms: dexterity, ability, talent, gift More Synonyms of clever
2. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
A clever idea, book, or invention is extremely effective and shows the skill of the people involved.
...a clever and gripping novel.
A colleague of mine in Milan devised the following very clever little experiment.
...this clever new gadget.
cleverlyadverb [ADVERB -ed]
...a cleverly-designed swimsuit.
3.
See too clever by half
More Synonyms of clever
clever in British English
(ˈklɛvə)
adjective
1.
displaying sharp intelligence or mental alertness
2.
adroit or dexterous, esp with the hands
3.
smart in a superficial way
4. British informal
sly; cunning
5. (predicative; used with a negative) dialect
healthy; fit
Derived forms
cleverish (ˈcleverish)
adjective
cleverly (ˈcleverly)
adverb
cleverness (ˈcleverness)
noun
Word origin
C13 cliver (in the sense: quick to seize, adroit), of uncertain origin
clever in American English
(ˈklɛvər)
adjective
1.
skillful in doing something; adroit; dexterous
2.
quick in thinking or learning; intelligent, ingenious, quick-witted, witty, facile, etc.
3.
showing ingenuity or quick, sometimes superficial, intelligence
a clever book
4. Dialectal
a.
amiable; good-natured
b.
handsome, convenient, nice, etc.
SIMILAR WORDS: inˈtelligent
SYNONYMY NOTE: clever, in this comparison, implies quick-wittedness or adroitness, as in contriving thesolution to a problem [a clever reply]; cunning suggests great skill or ingenuity, but often implies deception or craftiness [cunning as a fox]; ingenious stresses inventive skill, as in origination or fabrication [an ingenious explanation]; shrewd suggests cleverness accompanied by practicality [a shrewd understanding of the situation], sometimes verging on craftiness [a shrewd politician]
Derived forms
cleverly (ˈcleverly)
adverb
cleverness (ˈcleverness)
noun
Word origin
ME cliver, prob. < EFris klüfer or Norw dial klöver, ready, skillful; ? infl. by OE clifer, claw, hand, in the sense, “adroit with the hand”: for the latter sense development,see adroit, dexterous
More idioms containing
clever
box clever
Examples of 'clever' in a sentence
clever
It was a clever move on his part, to place her in his debt without making any kind of move on her.
Val McDermid THE LAST TEMPTATION (2002)
But whatever he is, he is clever, and has long prepared to move against the Kingdom.
Garth Nix LIRAEL: DAUGHTER OF THE CLAYR (2002)
It was an interesting twist, I have to admit, very clever of Bobby.
Laura Lippman IN A STRANGE CITY (2002)
In other languages
clever
British English: clever /ˈklɛvə/ ADJECTIVE
A clever person is intelligent and able to understand things easily or to plan things well.