n.
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German wizzi knowledge, Old English witan to know
Date: before 12th century
1 a : MIND , MEMORY b : reasoning power : INTELLIGENCE
2 a : SENSE 2A ― usually used in plural <alone and warming his five wit s, the white owl in the belfry sits ― Alfred Tennyson> b (1) : mental soundness : SANITY ― usually used in plural (2) : mental capability and resourcefulness : INGENUITY
3 a : astuteness of perception or judgment : ACUMEN b : the ability to relate seemingly disparate things so as to illuminate or amuse c (1) : a talent for banter or persiflage (2) : a witty utterance or exchange d : clever or apt humor
4 a : a person of superior intellect : THINKER b : an imaginatively perceptive and articulate individual especially skilled in banter or persiflage
– at one's wit's end or at one's wits' end : at a loss for a means of solving a problem
synonyms WIT , HUMOR , IRONY , SARCASM , SATIRE , REPARTEE mean a mode of expression intended to arouse amusement. WIT suggests the power to evoke laughter by remarks showing verbal felicity or ingenuity and swift perception especially of the incongruous <a playful wit >. HUMOR implies an ability to perceive the ludicrous, the comical, and the absurd in human life and to express these usually without bitterness <a sense of humor >. IRONY applies to a manner of expression in which the intended meaning is the opposite of what is seemingly expressed <the irony of the title>. SARCASM applies to expression frequently in the form of irony that is intended to cut or wound <given to heartless sarcasm >. SATIRE applies to writing that exposes or ridicules conduct, doctrines, or institutions either by direct criticism or more often through irony, parody, or caricature <a satire on the Congress>. REPARTEE implies the power of answering quickly, pointedly, or wittily <a dinner guest noted for repartee >.