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Origin and history of intellectual

intellectual(adj.)

late 14c., "grasped by the understanding" (rather than by the senses), from Old French intellectuel (13c.) and directly from Latin intellectualis "relating to the understanding," from intellectus "discernment, understanding," noun use of past participle of intelligere "to understand, discern" (see intelligence).

Sense of "characterized by a high degree of intellect" is from 1819. Meaning "appealing to or engaging the mental powers" is from 1834. Intellectual property "products of the intellect" is attested from 1845. Adjective formations in the sense "of or pertaining to the intellect" included intellective (early 15c.), intellectile (1670s).

intellectual(n.)

1590s, "mind, intellect, intellectual powers," from intellectual (adj.). The meaning "an intellectual person" is attested from 1650s but was hardly used in that sense in 19c. and the modern use in this sense seems to be a re-coinage from c. 1906. Related: Intellectuals.

also from 1590s

Entries linking to intellectual

intelligence(n.)

late 14c., "the highest faculty of the mind, capacity for comprehending general truths;" c. 1400, "faculty of understanding, comprehension," from Old French intelligence (12c.) and directly from Latin intelligentia, intellegentia "understanding, knowledge, power of discerning; art, skill, taste," from intelligentem (nominative intelligens) "discerning, appreciative," present participle of intelligere "to understand, comprehend, come to know." This is from assimilated form of inter "between" (see inter-) + legere "choose, pick out, read," from PIE root *leg- (1) "to collect, gather," with derivatives meaning "to speak (to 'pick out words')."

The meaning "superior understanding, sagacity, quality of being intelligent" is from early 15c. The sense of "information received or imparted, news" is recorded by mid-15c., especially "secret information from spies" (1580s). The meaning "a being endowed with understanding or intelligence" is late 14c. Intelligence quotient is recorded by 1921 (see I.Q.).

anti-intellectual(adj.)

"scorning intellectuals and their ways," 1821, from anti- + intellectual. As a noun meaning "an anti-intellectual person" from 1913.

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intellect
"the sum of the cognitive facilities (except sense or sense and imagination), the capacity for reasoning truth," late 14c. (but little used before 16c.), from Old French intellect "intellectual capacity" (13c.), and directly from Latin intellectus "discernment, a perception, unde
rational
late 14c., racional, "pertaining to or springing from reason;" mid-15c., of persons, "endowed with reason, having the power of reasoning," from Old French racionel and directly from Latin rationalis "of or belonging to reason, reasonable," from ratio (genitive rationis) "reckonin
cerebral
1801, "pertaining to the brain," from French cérébral (16c.), from Latin cerebrum "the brain" (also "the understanding"), from PIE *keres-, from root *ker- (1) "horn; head." The meaning "intellectual, clever" is from 1929. Cerebral palsy attested from 1824, originally a general t
middlebrow
wide chasm, I might almost say a vacuum, between the high-brow, who considers reading either as a trade or as a form of intellectual...system of education, giving rise to a new type that might be called the middle-brow, who will consider books as a source of intellectual...
ingenious
early 15c., "intellectual, talented," from Old French ingenios, engeignos "clever, ingenious" (Modern French ingénieux),...By a direct path, Latin ingenium produced Middle English ingeny "intellectual capacity, cleverness" (early 15c.), but this...
symposium
Its enjoyment was heightened by intellectual or agreeable conversation, by the introduction of music or dancers, and by other...Reflecting the Greek fondness for mixing wine and intellectual discussion, the modern sense is especially from the word being...
phenomenalism
The reason for the change is, because in the purely intellectual application which I shall now make of the term, ''phenomenalism...[John Grote, "Rough Notes on Modern Intellectual Science," 1865]...
exponent
1706, from Latin exponentem (nominative exponens), present participle of exponere "put forth" (see expound). Earliest use is the mathematical one (said to have been introduced in algebra by Descartes) for the symbol placed above and to the right of another to indicate by what pow
student
late 14c., studient, "studious person, one who pursues knowledge," from Old French estudiant "student, scholar, one who is studying" (Modern French étudiant), noun use of present participle of estudiier, from Medieval Latin studiare "to study," from Latin studium (see study (v.))
nineties
1857 as the years of someone's life between 90 and 99; from 1848 as the tenth decade of years in a given century; 1849 with reference to Fahrenheit temperature. See ninety. Many still live who remember those days; if the old men cannot tell you the exact date, they will say: 'It

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