autistic savant

noun

plural autistic savants

: an autistic person with savant syndrome

She is not just autistic but an autistic savant, meaning that she has unusual cognitive abilities, such as a photographic memory and excellent spatial skills.

—Kat McGowan

Examples of autistic savant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Tammet refers to himself as an autistic savant. —Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 6 July 2022

Dustin Hoffman won a Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Raymond Babbitt, an autistic savant brought on a cross country road trip during his brother’s bid to grab a piece of their father’s fortune. —cleveland, 11 June 2022

Charlie is a selfish schemer who only finds out about Raymond, after his estranged father dies and leaves all of his fortune, except the Roadmaster, to Raymond, an autistic savant. —Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 18 Jan. 2022

The Good Doctor, ABC’s medical drama about an autistic savant who works as a surgical resident, premiered that September and became an instant hit. —Sarah Kurchak, Time, 16 July 2021

But Kayla Cromer and Maeve Press are just as charming as the sisters — one of whom is a high-functioning autistic savant, and the other of whom is a misfit teen struggling to fit in with her classmates. —Noel Murray, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2020

Denzel Washington is wonderfully cast against type as the title character, an autistic savant with a radical streak. —Chris Ball, cleveland.com, 16 Feb. 2018

Alexander is what’s know as an autistic savant, with perfect pitch, a near-photographic memory for music and a surprising facility with the saxophone and piano. —Pam Kragen, sandiegouniontribune.com, 26 Jan. 2018

Word History

First Known Use

1972, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

autistic savant

noun

: an autistic person with savant syndrome

… only 10 percent of individuals with ASD [=autism spectrum disorder] have savant abilities; the prevalence in the general population without ASD is less than 1 percent. … Autistic savants can have either a single special skill or display multiple skills. In most cases, if not all, of autistic savants, these specialized skills are concrete, non-symbolic, right cerebral hemisphere skills, … and most reliant on memory.

—Noel Kok Hwee Chia, Academic Research International