clever

modif.

1. Mentally quick

   smart, bright, intelligent, quick, shrewd, ingenious, cunning, sharp, keen, astute, witty, quick-witted, sharp-witted, quick-thinking, amusing, scintillating, inventive, resourceful, original, talented, gifted, apt, facile, glib, precocious, brainy*, sharp as a tack*, quick on the uptake*, quick on the trigger*; see also intelligent 1, sly 1.

2. Apt, particularly with one's hands

   skillful, expert, adroit; see able 1, 2.

clever, implies quick-wittedness or adroitness, as in contriving the solution to a problem a clever reply; cunning suggests great skill or ingenuity, but often implies deception or craftiness cunning as a fox; ingenious stresses inventive skill, as in origination or fabrication an ingenious device; shrewd suggests cleverness and acumen accompanied by practicality a shrewd judge of character, sometimes verging on craftiness a shrewd politician See also syn. study at intelligent.