1
as in smart
having or showing a practical cleverness or judgment
a shrewd used car dealer who knew how to make the best possible deal shrewd investments that paid off big
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bitter
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
she pulled her coat tighter against the shrewd breeze whipping down the alley
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in cunning
clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means
a shrewd operator in the real estate game, she made every buyer think they were getting the deal of the century
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shrewd
For De Leon, growing up between Mexico and the United States gave him a shrewd understanding of human behavior.
—
Monica Hunter-Hart, Forbes, 1 Feb. 2025
As the emerging metropolis began to overtake San Francisco as the most populated city in the West, shrewd real estate developers began to cast their eyes up to the foothills of the Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountains.
—Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2025
Mayberry: Golden State snagging Jimmy Butler was a shrewd move.
—J. Robbins, J. Edwards and D. Mayberry, The Athletic, 8 Feb. 2025
Wiggins arrived in early 2020, the product of a shrewd bit of business by the Warriors to turn Kevin Durant’s departure from the team into D’Angelo Russell, whom the Timberwolves were known to covet.
—Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 6 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shrewd
Monica Hunter-Hart, Forbes, 1 Feb. 2025
As the emerging metropolis began to overtake San Francisco as the most populated city in the West, shrewd real estate developers began to cast their eyes up to the foothills of the Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountains.
—Jenny Jarvie, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2025
Mayberry: Golden State snagging Jimmy Butler was a shrewd move.
—J. Robbins, J. Edwards and D. Mayberry, The Athletic, 8 Feb. 2025
Wiggins arrived in early 2020, the product of a shrewd bit of business by the Warriors to turn Kevin Durant’s departure from the team into D’Angelo Russell, whom the Timberwolves were known to covet.
—Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 6 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shrewd
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shrewd
Adjective
-
In building preparedness for our longer lives to come, integration will be increasingly part of smart longevity strategies.—
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox,
Forbes,
21 Feb. 2025
-
Not refining the budget on paper by playing with numbers, but by being productively smart and undertaking a massive effort of production engineering.—
John Bleasdale,
Variety,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
This summer saw a bitter dispute between the U.S. and China over allegations surrounding doping by Chinese swimmers before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and suggestions from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that WADA had not been strong enough in enforcing its rules.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
The Athletic,
15 Feb. 2025
-
Their whirlwind political alliance, however, quickly frayed and deteriorated into a bitter feud in an Asian democracy that has long been hamstrung by clashing political clans.—
arkansasonline.com,
arkansasonline.com,
13 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Another male ally to the women’s crimes is Walter (Elijah Wood), a fellow citizen detective of Misty’s who uses his wealth and cunning to bury Shauna’s murder case once and for all.—
Proma Khosla,
IndieWire,
12 Feb. 2025
-
China has been especially cunning in building influence among developing countries.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Jacobs-Jenkins’ astute observations of White American life from his perspective as a Black playwright are fresh and illuminating.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
31 Jan. 2025
-
Regardless, Long’s point was an astute and frightening one for the rest of the NFC: Daniels isn’t just a promising rookie quarterback.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The director has been here before, with sharper aim.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
15 Feb. 2025
-
The Adams case is not the only one that will bring the foolishness of this directive into sharp relief.—
Andrew C. McCarthy,
National Review,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Pair the bottoms with a cute bodysuit or match the top with skirts or shorts, and you're left with multiple outfits in one.—
Jennifer Vermeer,
Travel + Leisure,
24 Feb. 2025
-
And the town of Brenham is filled with cute boutiques and restaurants.—
Cynthia Drake,
Southern Living,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
This is precisely why savvy venture investors understand that their money is ultimately invested in the team—not just the business idea, the product or the startup’s founder.—
Elena Volotovskaya,
Forbes,
20 Feb. 2025
-
Levien, a lawyer and sports executive, was savvy when negotiating with the city for a public investment.—
Cuneyt Dil,
Axios,
20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Now, 72 hours after being purged because they were considered probationary workers, a biting reality has set in for many of them.—
CNN.com Wire Service,
The Mercury News,
19 Feb. 2025
-
For example, a trip to Everglades National Park at the peak of summer could overlap with hurricane season or generally have higher biting insect activity and humid heat.—
Korrin Bishop,
Southern Living,
18 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shrewd.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shrewd. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share