genius

ge·nius

noun \ˈjēn-yəs, ˈjē-nē-əs\

plural ge·nius·es or ge·nii\-nē-ˌī\

Definition of GENIUS

1

a plural genii : an attendant spirit of a person or place b plural usually genii : a person who influences another for good or bad

2

: a strong leaning or inclination : penchant

3

a : a peculiar, distinctive, or identifying character or spirit b : the associations and traditions of a place c : a personification or embodiment especially of a quality or condition

4

plural usually genii : spirit, jinni

5

plural usually geniuses a : a single strongly marked capacity or aptitude <had a genius for getting along with boys — Mary Ross> b : extraordinary intellectual power especially as manifested in creative activity c : a person endowed with transcendent mental superiority; especially : a person with a very high IQ

Examples of GENIUS

1. Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton were great scientific geniuses.
2. You don't have to be a genius to see that this plan will never work.
3. He was a genius at handling the press.
4. She's now widely recognized as an artist of genius.
5. He's admired for his comic genius.
6. My plan is simple—that's the genius of it.
7. The genius of these new computers is their portability.

Origin of GENIUS

Latin, tutelary spirit, natural inclinations, from gignere to beget

First Known Use: 1513

Related to GENIUS

Synonyms: brain, brainiac, intellect, thinker, whiz, wiz, wizard

Antonyms: blockhead, dodo, dolt, dope, dumbbell, dummy, dunce, fathead, goon, half-wit, hammerhead, idiot, imbecile, knucklehead, moron, nitwit, numskull (or numbskull), pinhead

Related Words: polyhistor, polymath, Renaissance man; blue, bluestocking, highbrow, intellectual; sage, savant; egghead, geek, longhair, nerd; master, virtuoso; ace, crackerjack (also crackajack), natural

Near Antonyms: ignoramus, illiterate, know-nothing, lowbrow; anti-intellectual, philistine; ass, donkey, fool, jackass; beast, boor, cad, churl, clown, creep, cretin, cur, heel, jerk, louse, lout, skunk, snake, stinker

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