clever

adjective

/ˈklevə(r)/

/ˈklevər/

(comparative cleverer, superlative cleverest)

You can also use more clever and most clever.Idioms

jump to other results

(especially British English) quick at learning and understanding things synonym intelligent
- a clever child
- Clever girl!
- He's too clever by half, if you ask me (= it annoys me or makes me suspicious).
- They're not clever enough to find the code.
Synonyms intelligent
intelligent
- smart
- clever
- brilliant
- bright
These words all describe people who are good at learning, understanding and thinking about things, and the actions that show this ability.
- intelligent good at learning, understanding and thinking in a logical way about things; showing this ability: He’s a highly intelligent man.She asked a lot of intelligent questions.
- smart (especially North American English) quick at learning and understanding things; showing the ability to make good business or personal decisions: She’s smarter than her brother.That was a smart career move.
- clever (sometimes disapproving, especially British English) quick at learning and understanding things; showing this ability: How clever of you to work it out!He’s too clever by half, if you ask me. People use clever in the phrase : Clever boy/girl! to tell a young child that they have learnt or done something well. When used to or about an adult clever can be disapproving.
- brilliant extremely intelligent or showing a lot of skill: He’s a brilliant young scientist.
- bright intelligent; quick to learn: She’s probably the brightest student in the class. Bright is used especially to talk about young people. Common collocations of bright include girl, boy, kid, student, pupil.
Patterns
- clever/brilliant at something
- a(n) intelligent/smart/clever/brilliant/bright child/boy/girl/man/woman
- a(n) intelligent/smart/clever/brilliant thing to do
Topics Personal qualitiesa2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verbs
- be
- seem
- sound
- …
adverb
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
preposition
- at
- with
phrases
- too clever by half
- too clever for your own good
See full entry
(especially British English) showing skill
- clever at something He's always been clever at crosswords.
- clever at doing something She's clever at getting what she wants.
- clever with something He's clever with his hands.
Extra Examples
- I became quite clever at making tasty meals out of nothing.
- I'm not very clever at maths.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verbs
- be
- seem
- sound
- …
adverb
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
preposition
- at
- with
phrases
- too clever by half
- too clever for your own good
See full entry
showing intelligence or skill, for example in the design of an object, in an idea or somebody’s actions
- a clever trick
- What a clever idea!
- That wasn't very clever (= what you just did wasn't sensible), was it?
- clever marketing
- Admitting her mistake may have been quite a clever move on her part.
- it is clever of somebody to do something It was clever of him to have spotted the mistake.
- How clever of you to work it out!
- it is clever to do something 'Young people think it's clever to do that sort of thing, and it isn't,' she said.
- clever of somebody Letting him think it was his idea was very clever of you.
Extra Examples
- That wasn't a very clever thing to do.
- a simple yet fiendishly clever idea
- a clever little gadget
- The present owners have made clever use of the limited space in this room.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verbs
- be
adverb
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
See full entry
(British English, informal, disapproving) quick with words in a way that annoys people or does not show respect
- Don't you get clever with me!
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verbs
- be
- seem
- sound
- …
adverb
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
preposition
- at
- with
phrases
- too clever by half
- too clever for your own good
See full entry

Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘quick to catch hold’, only recorded in this period): perhaps of Dutch or Low German origin, and related to cleave ‘to stick to something’. In the late 16th cent. the term came to mean (probably through dialect use) ‘manually skilful’; the sense ‘possessing mental agility’ dates from the early 18th cent.

Idioms

box clever

(British English, informal) to act in a clever way to get what you want, sometimes tricking somebody
- Suzie realized that she had to box clever. She had to let Adam think she trusted him.

单词	clever
释义	clever adjective /ˈklevə(r)/ /ˈklevər/ (comparative cleverer, superlative cleverest) You can also use more clever and most clever.Idioms jump to other results (especially British English) quick at learning and understanding things synonym intelligent a clever child Clever girl! He's too clever by half, if you ask me (= it annoys me or makes me suspicious). They're not clever enough to find the code. Synonyms intelligentintelligent smart clever brilliant bright These words all describe people who are good at learning, understanding and thinking about things, and the actions that show this ability. intelligent good at learning, understanding and thinking in a logical way about things; showing this ability: He’s a highly intelligent man.She asked a lot of intelligent questions. smart (especially North American English) quick at learning and understanding things; showing the ability to make good business or personal decisions: She’s smarter than her brother.That was a smart career move. clever (sometimes disapproving, especially British English) quick at learning and understanding things; showing this ability: How clever of you to work it out!He’s too clever by half, if you ask me. People use clever in the phrase : Clever boy/girl! to tell a young child that they have learnt or done something well. When used to or about an adult clever can be disapproving. brilliant extremely intelligent or showing a lot of skill: He’s a brilliant young scientist. bright intelligent; quick to learn: She’s probably the brightest student in the class. Bright is used especially to talk about young people. Common collocations of bright include girl, boy, kid, student, pupil. Patterns clever/brilliant at something a(n) intelligent/smart/clever/brilliant/bright child/boy/girl/man/woman a(n) intelligent/smart/clever/brilliant thing to do Topics Personal qualitiesa2 Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs be seem sound … adverb extremely fairly very … preposition at with phrases too clever by half too clever for your own good See full entry (especially British English) showing skill clever at something He's always been clever at crosswords. clever at doing something She's clever at getting what she wants. clever with something He's clever with his hands. Extra Examples I became quite clever at making tasty meals out of nothing. I'm not very clever at maths. Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs be seem sound … adverb extremely fairly very … preposition at with phrases too clever by half too clever for your own good See full entry showing intelligence or skill, for example in the design of an object, in an idea or somebody’s actions a clever trick What a clever idea! That wasn't very clever (= what you just did wasn't sensible), was it? clever marketing Admitting her mistake may have been quite a clever move on her part. it is clever of somebody to do something It was clever of him to have spotted the mistake. How clever of you to work it out! it is clever to do something 'Young people think it's clever to do that sort of thing, and it isn't,' she said. clever of somebody Letting him think it was his idea was very clever of you. Extra Examples That wasn't a very clever thing to do. a simple yet fiendishly clever idea a clever little gadget The present owners have made clever use of the limited space in this room. Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs be adverb extremely fairly very … See full entry (British English, informal, disapproving) quick with words in a way that annoys people or does not show respect Don't you get clever with me! Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs be seem sound … adverb extremely fairly very … preposition at with phrases too clever by half too clever for your own good See full entry Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘quick to catch hold’, only recorded in this period): perhaps of Dutch or Low German origin, and related to cleave ‘to stick to something’. In the late 16th cent. the term came to mean (probably through dialect use) ‘manually skilful’; the sense ‘possessing mental agility’ dates from the early 18th cent. Idioms box clever (British English, informal) to act in a clever way to get what you want, sometimes tricking somebody Suzie realized that she had to box clever. She had to let Adam think she trusted him.
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