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Someone who is adroit is skillful and clever, especially in thought, behavior, or action.
When a person is ambidextrous, they can use their left or right hand with equal skill.
Something that is apposite is relevant or suitable to what is happening or being discussed.
If someone is competent in a job, they are able and skilled enough to do it well.
A condign reward or punishment is deserved by and appropriate or fitting for the person who receives it.
A connoisseur is someone who is an appreciative, informed, and knowledgeable judge of the fine arts; they can also just have excellent or perceptive taste in the fine arts without being an expert.
If someone shows consummate skill at doing something, that person’s skill is very great or almost perfect in every way.
A deft movement or action is made quickly and with skill.
Efficacy is the ability or power to produce an expected effect or result.
Something esoteric is known about or understood by very few people.
Flair can either refer to a natural talent that you possess or the ability you have at personal style.
A fruitless endeavor does not bring about a successful result; rather, it has been time spent pointlessly.
A futile attempt at doing something is hopeless and pointless because it simply cannot be accomplished.
A gauche person behaves in an awkward and unsuitable way in public because they lack social skills.
Someone who is ineffectual at a task is useless or ineffective when attempting to do it.
Someone who is inept is unable or unsuitable to do a job; hence, they are unfit for it.
Ingenuity in solving a problem is using creativity, intelligence, and cleverness to do so.
Someone is obtuse when they are slow to understand things; someone can choose to be obtuse when they deliberately do not try to figure things out.
If you do something with panache, you do it in a way that shows great skill, style, and confidence.
To be politic in a decision is to be socially wise and diplomatic.
A polyglot is someone who can speak or understand many languages.
A polymath is a person who knows a great deal about many different subjects.
If you have prowess, you possess considerable skill or ability in something.
A savant is a person who knows a lot about a subject, either via a lifetime of learning or by considerable natural ability.
A seasoned professional has a great deal of experience in what they do.
To act in an uncouth manner is to be awkward and unmannerly.
Someone who is ungainly is clumsy or awkward; something ungainly can be difficult to use, primarily because of its size or weight.
If someone is unlettered, they are illiterate, unable to read and write.
Something that is vacuous is empty or blank, such as a mind or stare.
A virtuoso is someone who is very skillful at something, especially playing a musical instrument.
If you waver, you cannot decide between two things because you have serious doubts about which choice is better.
A yokel is uneducated, naive, and unsophisticated; they do not know much about modern life or ideas because they sequester themselves in a rural setting.
Adj.
adept
uh-DEPT
Context
An adept juggler, Byron could balance any number of oddly shaped objects in the air. His adept skill left circus audiences amazed at the speed and nimbleness with which he tossed brightly colored balls, flaming torches, and exotic fruit in swirling patterns. An adept of the stage, he often accompanied his talented show with one-act plays. Audiences left every night amazed at such adept, excellent performances.
Quiz:Try again!
What does it mean when someone is adept at something?
A Skillful Department? We would not all agree that a government department is particularly adept at what it's supposed to do.
Examples
While any tax cut plan would have to make its way through a busy Congress in a form palatable enough to earn a confrontational executive’s signature, the President has shown himself to be quite learned and adept at deficit spending.
—
The Economist
When a presidency is as severely damaged as this one, the normal drill is to empower a strong and politically adept White House chief of staff to make the necessary changes.
—
The Washington Post
The sources I talked to describe the would-be deputy station chief as a person who inspires little confidence, and who is highly adept at working her way through the bureaucracy, but has no leadership ability.
—
Harper's Magazine
Needless to say though, many of the people I met in the math and science departments might have been adept in said areas, but they weren’t very well rounded.
—
Men's Health
If someone if adept at a skill, she is “suitable” or “fit” “towards” it.
Word Theater
YouTube: Francis Brunn: The World's Best Juggler Adept barely begins to describe this guy!
The panel shows a small video clip of either the word in actual use or a scene that represents the meaning of a word. This not only breaks up the monotony of studying words but also provides another avenue to strengthen word meaning. Enjoy!
Word Constellation
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Related Words
adroit ·
ambidextrous ·
apposite ·
competent ·
condign ·
connoisseur ·
consummate ·
deft ·
efficacy ·
esoteric ·
flair+ ·
ingenuity+ ·
panache ·
politic ·
polyglot ·
polymath ·
prowess+ ·
savant ·
seasoned+ ·
virtuoso ·
fruitless+ ·
futile+ ·
gauche ·
ineffectual+ ·
inept+ ·
obtuse ·
uncouth ·
ungainly ·
unlettered ·
vacuous ·
waver ·
yokel ·
Similar sense
Opposite sense
Word Variants
adept
n
→
a person skilled in a certain area; expert
inept
adj
→
unskilled; untalented
The section lists important variants and alternate definitions of the headword. Knowing variants will often help you both remember and understand the word. Not all variants are listed - only the ones we think that are important for you to know.