wit

vivacité d’esprit, intelligence

Capacité à réfléchir vite et à trouver des réponses ou des solutions astucieuses.

En anglais simple : The ability to think quickly and find clever answers or solutions.

• Her quick wit saved the day.
• He used his wits to escape the locked room.
• You need sharp wit to answer that quickly.

Synonymes : cleverness, quick thinking, resourcefulness

Expressions courantes : quick wit, sharp wit, use your wit

présence d'esprit

Capacité à remarquer un danger et à réagir raisonnablement ; s’emploie généralement au pluriel.

En anglais simple : Your ability to notice danger and respond sensibly, usually used in the plural.

• Keep your wits about you here.
• She gathered her wits before crossing the busy road.
• He regained his wits after the sudden explosion.

Comment l'utiliser : keep your wits about you (Keep your wits about you when walking through the crowd.)

Synonymes : senses, awareness

Expressions courantes : gather your wit, retain your wit

raison

Capacité à penser normalement et à distinguer le réel ; s’emploie généralement au pluriel.

En anglais simple : The ability to think normally and understand what is real, usually used in the plural.

• She feared she was losing her wits.
• That sudden crash scared me out of my wits.
• Has the old king lost his wits?

Synonymes : sanity, reason

Contraires : insanity

Expressions courantes : lose one's wit, scared out of wit

savoir

Savoir quelque chose ou en avoir conscience.

En anglais simple : To know something or be aware of it.

• The letter names two heirs, to wit, Anne and Paul.
• I wit nothing of his secret journey.
• They wit not what danger awaits them.

Comment l'utiliser : wit of something (I wit nothing of this matter.); to wit (He left one possession, to wit, his watch.)

Synonymes : know

Expressions courantes : to wit, wit of something