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sapient

adj
/ˈseɪ.pi.ənt/UK/ˈseɪ.pi.ənt/US

Etymology

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English sapient (“learned, wise”), from Old French sapient, or from its etymon Latin sapient-, a stem of sapiēns (“(adjective) discerning, judicious, wise; (noun) wise man, sage”), the present active participle of sapiō (“to have a flavour of, taste like; (figurative) to have good taste; to have discernment or sense; to be prudent, sensible, or wise”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *seh₁p-, *sep- (“to taste; to try out”). Doublet of savant. The noun is derived from the adjective, and also influenced by Latin sapiēns (noun) (see above).

  1. derived from sapiēns
  2. derived from *sep-✻
  3. derived from sapient
  4. inherited from sapient — “learned, wise”

Definitions

  1. Possessing discernment and wisdom

    Possessing discernment and wisdom; learned, wise.

    • [To Edgar] Come ſit thou here moſt learned Iuſtice / [To the Fool] Thou ſapient ſir ſit here, […]
    • Spot more delicious then thoſe Gardens feign’d / Or of reviv’d Adonis, or renovvnd / Alcinous, hoſt of old Laertes Son [Odysseus], / Or that, not Myſtic, vvhere the Sapient King [Solomon] / Held dalliance vvith his faire Egyptian Spouſe.
    • What is it but a vain and curious skill, / If sapient Germany must lie deprest, / Beneath the brutal sword?

  2. Attempting to appear discerning or wise.

    • Novv tell me, dignified and ſapient ſir, / My man of morals, nurtur'd in the ſhades / Of Academus, is this falſe or true?
    • VVell! but a leſſening of prodigal expences, and the œconomy vvhich has been introduced by the virtuous and ſapient aſſembly, makes amends for the loſſes ſuſtained in the receipt of revenue.
    • I think I seem them at their work—these sapient trouble-tombs.

  3. Followed by of

    Followed by of: aware or knowledgeable of.

  4. ›+ 6 more definitions

    1. Of a lifeform or species

      Of a lifeform or species: possessing intelligence or a high degree of self-awareness.

      • When EXPLORATION blazed through space / The first sky-trail to far-flung stars, / And found men, sapient, on Mars, / He gained renown's most honored place.
      • It was inhabited by a sapient humanoid race, and some of them were civilized enough to put it in Class V, and Colonial Office doctrine on Class V planets was rigid.
      • Nessus had not spoken mockingly; but Speaker reacted with rage. "What sapient being would not fear such power?"

    2. Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of Homo sapiens (modern human beings).

    3. Having a (good) flavour or taste

      Having a (good) flavour or taste; sapid.

    4. A wise person

      A wise person; a sage.

      • "She canna do that," said another sapient of the same profession— […]

    5. An intelligent, self-aware being.

    6. A human being of the species Homo sapiens.

The neighborhood

Derived

insapient, nonsapient, sapientize, sapiently, subsapient

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at sapient. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01sapient02discerning03discernment04perceive05understand06know07cognizant

A definitional loop anchored at sapient. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

7 hops · closes at sapient

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA