ingenious

ingenious
ingenious early 15c., "intellectual, talented," from M.Fr. ingénieux "clever, ingenious" (O.Fr. engeignos), from L. ingeniosus "of good capacity, full of intellect; clever, gifted with genius," from ingenium "innate qualities, ability," lit. "that which is inborn," from in- "in" (see IN- (Cf. in-) (2)) + gignere, from PIE *gen- "produce" (see GENUS (Cf. genus)). Sense of "skillful, clever at contrivance" first recorded 1540s. In a sense of "crafty, clever, skillful" M.E. had enginous (mid-14c.), from O.Fr. engeignos. Related: Ingeniously; ingeniousness.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • Ingenious — A game in play Designer(s) Reiner Knizia Publisher(s) Fantasy Flight Games Kosmos Sophisticated Games Players …   Wikipedia

  • Ingenious — In*gen ious, a. [L. ingeniosus, fr. ingenium innate or natural quality, natural capacity, genius: cf. F. ing[ e]nieux. See {Engine}.] 1. Possessed of genius, or the faculty of invention; skillful or promp to invent; having an aptitude to contrive …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • ingenious — ingenious, ingenuous These two words are distantly related and both have undergone a major shift in meaning. Ingenious came into English via French from a Latin source derived from ingenium ‘cleverness’; it originally meant ‘intellectual,… …   Modern English usage

  • ingenious — [in jēn′yəs] adj. [LME < MFr ingenieux < L ingeniosus, of good capacity, gifted with genius, ingenious < ingenium, innate quality, ability < in , in + gignere: see GENUS] 1. Obs. having genius; having great mental ability 2. clever,… …   English World dictionary

  • ingenious — index artful, competent, deft, expert, fertile, original (creative), politic, proficient …   Law dictionary

  • ingenious — cunning, *clever, adroit Analogous words: inventing or inventive, creating or creative, discovering (see corresponding verbs at INVENT): *dexterous, handy, deft: skillful, adept, skilled, expert, *proficient, masterly …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • ingenious — [adj] clever; brilliant able, adroit, artistic, bright, canny, crafty, creative, cunning, deviceful, dexterous, gifted, imaginative, innovational, innovative, innovatory, intelligent, inventive, original, ready, resourceful, shrewd, skillful, sly …   New thesaurus

  • ingenious — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ clever, original, and inventive. DERIVATIVES ingeniously adverb ingeniousness noun. ORIGIN Latin ingeniosus, from ingenium mind, intellect ; related to ENGINE(Cf. ↑engineless) …   English terms dictionary

  • ingenious — ingeniously, adv. ingeniousness, n. /in jeen yeuhs/, adj. 1. characterized by cleverness or originality of invention or construction: an ingenious machine. 2. cleverly inventive or resourceful: an ingenious press agent. 3. Obs. a. intelligent;… …   Universalium

  • ingenious — in•gen•ious [[t]ɪnˈdʒin yəs[/t]] adj. 1) characterized by cleverness or originality of invention: an ingenious argument[/ex] 2) cleverly inventive; resourceful: an ingenious mechanic[/ex] 3) Obs. a) intelligent; showing genius b) ingenuous •… …   From formal English to slang

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