ingenious
Very clever and full of smart ideas.
ingenious in a sentence
- Her ingenious trap used a cardboard box, a stick and a trail of sweets.
- The ingenious inventor built a machine that buttered toast and poured tea at the same time.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to ingenious?
- Adull
- Bclever
- Csilly
- Dfoolish
Show the answer
B: clever. The other three mean the opposite of ingenious.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to ingenious?
- Ainventive
- Bbrilliant
- Cfoolish
- Dclever
Show the answer
C: foolish. The other three mean nearly the same as ingenious.
Words that mean something similar
clever, inventive, brilliant
Words that mean the opposite
foolish, silly, dull
Careful: ingenious is not crafty
Ingenious is cleverness you admire. Crafty is cleverness used to trick someone. Read why children mix them up.
More words about thinking & learning
- inquisitive: Always wanting to find things out.
- inscribe: To write or carve words onto something.
- instinct: A natural feeling that makes you act without thinking.
- intangible: Not able to be touched or held, but still real.
- interpret: To work out what something means.
- intrigue: To make someone very curious and interested.
- invalid: Not accepted as correct or official, usually because it breaks a rule.
- jinx: Something believed to bring bad luck.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test