INDEX:
1. people
2. decisions/plans/ideas/actions
3. to start behaving sensibly after not being sensible
4. to try to persuade someone to behave sensibly
5. the ability to make sensible decisions
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ STUPID/SILLY
↑ CRAZY
see also
↑ LOGICAL
↑ CALM
◆◆◆
1. people
▷ sensible /ˈsensɪb ə l, ˈsensəb ə l/ [adjective]
someone who is sensible is unlikely to do anything stupid, because they judge situations well and make good decisions :
▪ Laura’s a pretty sensible girl. I don’t think she’d talk to strangers.
▪ He’s one of the few sensible people on the council.
be sensible
spoken
▪ Be sensible - you can’t go out without a coat in this weather.
sensible about
▪ People are far more sensible about what and how much they drink these days.
▷ reasonable /ˈriːz ə nəb ə l/ [adjective]
someone who is reasonable makes sensible decisions that are fair to everyone :
▪ She’s usually very reasonable as a boss, but now and again her temper flares up.
▪ Let’s try and discuss this in a calm and reasonable way.
be reasonable
spoken
▪ Be reasonable, Paul - I’m only trying to help.
▷ responsible /rɪˈspɒnsɪb ə l, rɪˈspɒnsəb ə lǁrɪˈspɑːn-/ [adjective]
someone who is responsible can be trusted to do what they should do and to think about the results of their actions :
▪ We aim to educate our children to become socially responsible citizens.
▪ I’m a responsible adult. I can make my own choices.
responsibly [adverb]
▪ People should have their driving licences taken away if they can’t drive responsibly.
▷ mature /məˈtʃʊəʳ/ [adjective]
a child or young person who is mature behaves in a sensible way, as you would expect an older person to behave :
▪ She’s very mature for her age.
▪ After two years of college, the students have a much more mature attitude.
maturity [uncountable noun]
▪ Ask yourself if you have the maturity and stability to raise a baby.
▷ rational /ˈræʃ ə nəl/ [adjective]
if someone is rational, their actions are based on a clear understanding of the facts of a situation, and are not influenced by their feelings or imagination :
▪ Taking action to defend yourself is a completely rational reaction if you’re being attacked.
▪ Many of the patients have long histories of drug abuse, and they’re not always rational.
rationally [adverb]
▪ Do people behave completely rationally when they vote in elections?
▷ practical/realistic/pragmatic /ˈpræktɪk ə l, ˌrɪəˈlɪstɪk◂, prægˈmætɪk/ [adjective]
having the ability to understand situations and to know what is or is not possible :
▪ She’s a practical manager who realizes that a happy workforce is also a productive one.
▪ The people of this country need to be more realistic - you can’t have lower taxes as well as higher spending on health and pensions.
▪ She is a tough, pragmatic, intuitive leader.
▷ no-nonsense /nəʊ ˈnɒns ə nsǁ-ˈnɑːnsens/ []
direct and dealing with things in a practical way, without wasting time on things that do not matter :
▪ Mathews is a no-nonsense veteran of the police department.
▪ Jason, with his no-nonsense approach, has been an asset to the project.
▷ down-to-earth /ˌdaʊn tʊ ˈɜːʳθ◂/ [adjective]
someone who is down-to-earth is practical and honest, and does not think they are more important, more intelligent etc than other people :
▪ She’s sophisticated, but also practical and down-to-earth.
▪ People are surprised by what an unpretentious, down-to-earth guy he really is.
▷ talk sense /ˌtɔːk ˈsens/ [verb phrase] especially spoken
if someone talks sense, they express sensible ideas or opinions that you agree with :
▪ Someone who could talk sense would get my vote, but most politicians don’t.
▷ have your head screwed on British /have your head screwed on right American /hæv jɔːʳ ˈhed skruːd ɒn, hæv jɔːʳ ˈhed skruːd ɒn ˌraɪt/ [verb phrase not in progressive]
use this about someone who will always behave sensibly in a difficult or confusing situation :
▪ Don’t worry about Sheila. She’s got her head screwed on.
▪ Anyone who can raise three such normal kids in Hollywood must have their head screwed on right.
▷ sane /seɪn/ [adjective]
able to think clearly and likely to behave in a sensible way, especially when other people are not being sensible :
▪ I don’t think any sane person would take his threats seriously.
▪ It was a relief to hear one sane voice among all the shouting and hysteria.
keep somebody sane
▪ Exercise keeps me sane. If I didn’t exercise, the stress would get to me.
2. decisions/plans/ideas/actions
▷ sensible /ˈsensɪb ə l, ˈsensəb ə l/ [adjective]
a sensible decision, idea, plan etc is likely to have good results because it is based on good, practical reasons :
▪ He gave me some very sensible advice.
▪ If anyone has any sensible suggestions as to how to deal with this, please let me know.
it is sensible to do something
▪ It would have been more sensible to save the money than to spend it all on clothes.
the sensible thing to do
used to give advice
▪ The sensible thing to do would be to rest until you feel better.
sensibly [adverb]
▪ She had sensibly decided to leave the car at home.
▷ make sense /ˌmeɪk ˈsens/ [verb phrase] especially spoken
if something makes sense, it seems a very sensible thing to do :
▪ There are parts of the plan that simply don’t make sense.
it makes sense (for somebody) to do something
▪ It made sense for Sam to live nearer the college.
▪ It may not make sense to rebuild the houses damaged by the floods.
▷ be a good idea /biː ə ˌgʊd aɪˈdɪə/ [verb phrase] especially spoken
to seem to be the right and sensible thing to do :
▪ Yes, I think a short meeting this afternoon would be a good idea.
▪ ‘Should I phone him?’ ‘I don’t think that’s a good idea.’
it’s a good idea to do something
▪ It’s a good idea to tell a friend if you are going on a date with someone you don’t know well.
▷ reasonable /ˈriːz ə nəb ə l/ [adjective]
a reasonable idea, request, action etc seems sensible and fair, and you can understand the reasons for it :
▪ I thought her request for more information was reasonable, but it was refused.
▪ I’ll go along with any reasonable plan.
it is reasonable to assume/believe/suppose
▪ It’s reasonable to assume that most prices will go up again.
▷ rational /ˈræʃ ə nəl/ [adjective]
based on facts and intelligent thinking, and not influenced by feelings or the imagination :
▪ Education helps us to make rational decisions.
▪ People’s behaviour isn’t always purely rational.
rationally [adverb]
▪ We must consider the problem rationally.
▷ practical/realistic /ˈpræktɪk ə l, ˌrɪəˈlɪstɪk◂/ [adjective]
based on a good understanding of what is or is not possible :
▪ The city authorities are trying to work out a practical solution to the problem of homelessness.
▪ Starting my own business isn’t a very realistic idea at the moment.
▪ If you want to sell your home, be realistic about the price.
▷ pragmatic /prægˈmætɪk/ [adjective]
based on facts and what is likely to really succeed, but not always considering other things such as people’s feelings, or attempting anything more exciting or risky :
▪ Pragmatic considerations led the government to abandon pure Marxist policies.
▪ We need a pragmatic approach to sex education in schools.
▷ logical /ˈlɒdʒɪk ə lǁˈlɑː-/ [adjective]
a logical action or decision seems to be clearly the right thing to do, because it is based on thinking intelligently about all the facts of a situation, and not based on feelings or emotions :
▪ As I wanted to travel to other countries, studying languages was the logical choice.
▪ This is the logical place to build a new airport.
▪ It seemed logical to start by visiting the scene of the crime.
▷ wise /waɪz/ [adjective]
a wise decision or action is based on good judgement and on your experience of life :
▪ ‘I’ve decided to apply for that job.’ ‘I think that’s a very wise decision.’
▪ a wise investment
it is wise (for somebody) to do something
▪ He thought it might be wise not to tell her what had happened.
▪ Do you think it’s wise for him to travel alone?
▷ within reason /wɪðɪn ˈriːz ə n/ [adverb]
according to what is generally accepted as being sensible and reasonable and no more :
▪ Children should, within reason, be able to experiment with many different activities.
▪ Within reason, the city does what it can to prevent traffic accidents.
3. to start behaving sensibly after not being sensible
▷ come to your senses /ˌkʌm tə jɔːʳ ˈsensə̇z/ [verb phrase]
▪ He’d be crazy to leave Liza - it’s about time he came to his senses.
▪ Her parents finally came to their senses and realized they couldn’t force her to marry someone she didn’t like.
▷ see reason /siː ˈriːz ə n/ [verb phrase]
to start behaving sensibly after listening to advice or arguments from other people :
▪ I wish he’d see reason and stop putting so much pressure on me.
▷ get real /get ˈrɪəl/ [verb phrase] spoken
use this to tell someone that they are not being sensible or practical, for example if they think that a difficult problem will be easy to deal with :
▪ Get real. It’s pretty hard for a young woman on her first job to take a case of sexual harassment to court.
▪ ‘We could always ask Dad for more money.’ ‘Get real! We’d be grounded for a month!’
4. to try to persuade someone to behave sensibly
▷ talk some sense into /ˌtɔːk səm ˈsens ɪntuː/ [verb phrase]
▪ It took some time to calm him down and talk some sense into him.
▪ Will you try and talk some sense into him - he says he’s going to drop out of school.
▷ get somebody to see reason /ˌget somebody tə ˌsiː ˈriːz ə n/ [verb phrase]
to manage, with some difficulty, to persuade someone to behave sensibly by talking to them about the situation :
▪ I just can’t get her to see reason.
▪ Eventually we managed to get the border guards to see reason.
▷ bring somebody to their senses /ˌbrɪŋ somebody tə ðeəʳ ˈsensə̇z/ [verb phrase]
if something that has happened, especially an unpleasant surprise, brings someone to their senses, it makes them stop behaving in a stupid way and start behaving sensibly :
▪ Seeing so many friends dying of drug-related illnesses was what brought me to my senses.
▪ It took a lawsuit to bring them to their senses.
5. the ability to make sensible decisions
▷ common sense /ˌkɒmən ˈsens◂ǁˌkɑː-/ [uncountable noun]
the ability to make intelligent, practical decision based on your experience or on what is generally accepted as being true - use this about something that is clearly true, so it is sensible to believe it :
▪ Obviously people are going to respond better to praise than to criticism - that’s just common sense.
common sense tells you ...
▪ Common sense tells you to keep candles away from small children and pets.
have common sense
▪ She’s highly intelligent and intellectual, but she’s got no practical common sense.
use your common sense
▪ It’s not difficult to work out the answer - you just have to use your common sense.
common-sense [adjective only before noun]
▪ She has written a common-sense guide to diet and exercise.
▷ sense/good sense /sens, ˌgʊd ˈsens/ [uncountable noun]
the ability to behave in an intelligent and sensible way, and to avoid doing anything stupid :
▪ I sometimes wish you’d show more sense.
▪ No-one in the group seemed to have Charlie’s good sense.
have the (good) sense to do something
▪ Luckily, Sheena had the good sense to call the police before Baxter left the building.
▪ I’m sure she has too much sense to give him her address.