ˈnüs, ˈnau̇s noun
( -es )
Etymology: Greek noos, nous mind
1.
a. : an intelligent purposive principle controlling and ordering the world of matter : the highest intellect : mind , reason
b. Platonism
(1) : a purely teleological and completely immaterial principle
(2) : the capacity for the highest intuitive and immediate insight
c. Aristotelianism : reason regarded either as passive (as in sense perception) or as active and creative
d. Neoplatonism : the divine reason as the first emanation or creation of God
2. Britain : mental quickness : alertness , common sense
may be full of erudite theories but is liable to go astray from lack of practical sense and ordinary nous — Jacquetta & Christopher Hawkes