Nous

//nuːs// noun

noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The mind or intellect, reason, both rational and emotional. uncountable

    "I feel the will to roam, to learn By test, experience, nous, That fire is hot and ocean deep, And wolves carnivorous."

  2. 2
    that which is responsible for one's thoughts, feelings, and conscious brain functions; the seat of the faculty of reason wordnet
  3. 3
    The divine reason, regarded as first divine emanation. uncountable
  4. 4
    common sense wordnet
  5. 5
    Common sense; practical intelligence. uncountable

    "to demonstrate nous"

Synonyms

All synonyms
mindacuityacutenessadroitnessanima mundiaptitude

Example

More examples

"Hair and nous don't fit in one head."

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek νοῦς (noûs) or νόος (nóos, “mind”).

Related phrases

common sense

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.