cerebral

ce·re·bral

adj \sə-ˈrē-brəl, ˈser-ə-, ˈse-rə-\

Definition of CEREBRAL

1

a : of or relating to the brain or the intellect b : of, relating to, affecting, or being the cerebrum

2

a : appealing to intellectual appreciation <cerebral drama> b : primarily intellectual in nature <a cerebral society>

— ce·re·bral·ly \-brə-lē\ adverb

Examples of CEREBRAL

1. He's a very cerebral comedian.
2. <a very cerebral jurist who has given much thought to what makes our nation's constitution work>

Origin of CEREBRAL

French cérébral, from Latin cerebrum brain; akin to Old High German hirni brain, Greek kara head, keras horn, Sanskrit śiras head — more at horn

First Known Use: 1816

Related to CEREBRAL

Synonyms: blue, intellectual, eggheaded, geeky, highbrow, highbrowed, intellectualist, intellectualistic, long-haired (or longhair), nerdish, nerdy

Antonyms: anti-intellectual, lowbrow, nonintellectual, philistine

Related Words: cultivated, cultured; middlebrow; erudite, learned, literate, polyhistoric, polymath (or polymathic), scholarly, well-read; academic (also academical), bookish, professorial; didactic, high-toned, hyperintellectual, pedantic; high-hat, snobbish, snobby, snooty; educated, schooled; brainy, bright, brilliant, clever, intelligent, quick-witted, smart

Near Antonyms: uncultivated, uncultured; ignorant, illiterate, uneducated, unlettered, unread; dumb, foolish, idiotic (also idiotical), moronic, slow, stupid, unintelligent; benighted, unenlightened

see all synonyms and antonyms

[+]more[-]hide

Other Anatomy Terms

bilateral symmetry, carotid, cartilage, dorsal, entrails, prehensile, renal, solar plexus, supine, thoracic, ventral

Rhymes with CEREBRAL

palpebral, vertebral