Link Centre Dictionary

savvy

UK/ˈsæv.i/ US/ˈsævi/ uncommon informal
verb (1) noun (1)

verb

1.

get the meaning of something

  • “Do you comprehend the meaning of this letter?”
Synonyms

noun

1.

the cognitive condition of someone who understands

  • “he has virtually no understanding of social cause and effect”
Synonyms

Origin

Alteration of save, sabi (“to know”) (in English-based creoles and pidgins), from Portuguese sabe (“[she/he] knows”), from saber (“to know”), from Latin sapere (“to taste; to know”). First appears c. 1785 in a dictionary by Francis Grose, as a noun, “practical sense, intelligence”; also a verb, “to know, to understand”. The adjective is first recorded 1905, from the noun.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.