shrewd
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shrewd
- /ʃɹuːd/
Rhymes with -uːd
Where it comes from
From Middle English schrewed (“depraved; wicked”, literally “accursed”), from schrewen (“to curse; beshrew”), from schrewe, schrowe, screwe (“evil or wicked person/thing”), from Old English sċrēawa (“wicked person”, literally “biter”). Equivalent to shrew + -ed. More at shrew.
The sense of "cunning" developed in early 16ᵗʰ c., gradually gaining a positive connotation by 17ᵗʰ c.
adjective shrewder · shrewdest · shrewde
- Showing clever resourcefulness in practical matters.
- Artful, tricky or cunning.
- streetwise, street-smart. Willie is very aware of this fact and lets Johnny Attell know that there is a fly in the ointment, and Johnny, who is a very shrewd article, has his chauffeur drive him to Bradford Street so he can change the kid's mind.
- Knowledgeable, intelligent, keen. The most persistent tormentor was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who scored a hat-trick in last month’s corresponding fixture in Iceland. His ability to run at defences is instantly striking, but it is his clever use of possession that has persuaded some shrewd judges that he is an even better prospect th
- Nigh accurate. a shrewd guess
- Severe, intense, hard. a shrewd blow, or assault
- Sharp, snithy, piercing. a shrewd wind
- Bad, evil, threatening. Portia: There are some shrewd contents in yon same paper, That steals the colours from Bassanio's cheek: Some dear friend dead; else nothing in the world Could turn so much the constitution Of any constant man. What, worse and worse!— […]
- Portending, boding.
- Noxious, scatheful, mischievous. They were wont to please the Fairies, that they might doe them no shrewd turnes, by sweeping clean the Hearth and setting by it […]
- Abusive, shrewish.
- Scolding, satirical, sharp. Leonato: By my troth, niece, thou wilt never get thee a husband, if thou be so shrewd of thy tongue.
