different between alert vs clever

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /??l??t/
• (General American) enPR: ?-lûrt?, IPA^(key): /??l?t/
• Rhymes: -??(?)t
• Hyphenation: a?lert

Etymology 1

From French alerte (“alert”), from the phrase à l'erte (“on the watch”), from Italian all'erta (“to the height”), from erta (“lookout, tower”).

Adjective

alert (comparative more alert, superlative most alert)

2. Attentive; awake; on guard.
3. (obsolete) brisk; nimble; moving with celerity.

   • I saw an alert young fellow that cocked his hat upon a friend of his who entered just at the same time with myself

Translations

Noun

alert (plural alerts)

1. An alarm.
2. A notification of higher importance than an advisory.
3. (military) A state of readiness for potential combat.

   an airborne alert; ground alert

Translations

Etymology 2

Formed within English by conversion, from alert (adj). Compare French alerter.

Verb

alert (third-person singular simple present alerts, present participle alerting, simple past and past participle alerted)

1. To give warning to.

Translations

References

Anagrams

• alter, alter-, altre, artel, later, ratel, taler, telar

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French alerte.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a??l?rt/
• Hyphenation: alert
• Rhymes: -?rt

Adjective

alert (comparative alerter, superlative alertst)

1. alert

Inflection

Derived terms

• alertheid

Anagrams

• later, ratel

German

Etymology

From French alerte.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [a?l??t]

Adjective

alert (comparative alerter, superlative am alertesten)

1. alert

Declension

Further reading

• “alert” in Duden online

Romanian

Etymology

From French alerte

Adjective

alert m or n (feminine singular alert?, masculine plural aler?i, feminine and neuter plural alerte)

1. wide-awake

Declension

Swedish

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a?læ?/
• Rhymes: -æ??

Adjective

alert (comparative alertare, superlative alertast)

1. alert

Declension

Anagrams

• artel, later, letar, realt

English

Etymology

From East Anglian dialectal English cliver (“expert at seizing”), from Middle English cliver (“tenacious”), perhaps from Old English *clifer, clibbor (“clinging”), or perhaps from East Frisian (compare Saterland Frisian kluftich), or dialectal Norwegian klover (“ready, skillful”); possibly influenced by Old English clifer (“claw, hand”). Related to cleave. Perhaps influenced by Welsh celfydd (“talented, dexterous, expert”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?kl?v?/
• Rhymes: -?v?(r)
• Hyphenation: clev?er

Adjective

clever (comparative cleverer or more clever, superlative cleverest or most clever)

1. Nimble with hands or body; skillful; adept.
   • a. 1898, Francis James Child (collator), Child's Ballads, 198: "Bonny John Seton",

     The Highland men, they're clever men / At handling sword and shield,

2. Resourceful, sometimes to the point of cunning.
   • 1890, Joseph Jacobs (collator), Molly Whuppie, English Fairy Tales,

     The youngest of the three strange lassies was called Molly Whuppie, and she was very clever. She noticed that before they went to bed the giant put straw ropes round her neck and her sisters', and round his own lassies' necks, he put gold chains. So Molly took care and did not fall asleep, but waited till she was sure every one was sleeping sound. Then she slipped out of the bed, and took the straw ropes off her own and her sisters' necks, and took the gold chains off the giant's lassies. She then put the straw ropes on the giant's lassies and the gold on herself and her sisters, and lay down.
3. Smart, intelligent, or witty; mentally quick or sharp.
   • 19th c, Charles Kingsley, A Farewell,

     Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever; / Do noble things, not dream them all day long: / And so make life, death, and that vast forever / One grand, sweet song.

   • 1912, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett (translator), The Brothers Karamazov, Book V, Chapter 7: "It's Always Worth While Speaking to a Clever Man",

     I would have sent Alyosha, but what use is Alyosha in a thing like that? I send you just because you are a clever fellow. Do you suppose I don't see that? You know nothing about timber, but you've got an eye.

4. Showing inventiveness or originality; witty.
5. (anthropology, of an Aboriginal Australian) Possessing magical abilities.
   • 1904, Journal & Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, Vol. XXXVIII, page 255,

     When a clever man is out hunting and comes across the tracks of, say, a kangaroo, he follows them along and talks to the footprints all the time for the purpose of injecting magic into the animal which made them.

   • 1947, Oceania, Volumes 16-17, page 330,

     Prior to this, the two women, who were “clever,” and possessed a certain amount of magical “power,” […] .
6. (obsolete) Fit; suitable; having propriety.
   • 18th c, Jonathan Swift, Alexander Pope (later lines), Imitation of Horace, 1852, Charles Knight (collator), Half-hours with the Best Authors, Volume 4, page 188,

     I can't but think 'twould sound more clever, / To me and to my heirs forever.

7. (obsolete) Well-shaped; handsome.
   • 1712, John Arbuthnot, The History of John Bull, Undated modern edition, Library of Alexandria, unnumbered page,

     The girl was a tight, clever wench as any was.

8. (US, dated) Good-natured; obliging.
9. (Britain, colloquial) Fit and healthy; free from fatigue or illness.

Synonyms

• (smart, intelligent or witty): quick-witted, sharp-witted
  • See also Thesaurus:intelligent
• (resourceful, perhaps cunning): cunning, street-smart
• (nimble or skillful): adroit, talented
• (showing inventiveness): ingenious
• (possessing magical powers): magical

Antonyms

• (smart, intelligent or witty): dull, stupid
• (resourceful, perhaps cunning): ineffectual, naive
• (nimble or skillful): clumsy
• (showing inventiveness):
• (possessing magical powers): natural

Derived terms

Translations

References

Further reading

• clever in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• clever in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• clever at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• Clerve

German

Etymology

From English clever.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?kl?v?]
• Hyphenation: cle?ver

Adjective

clever (comparative cleverer or clevrer, superlative am cleversten)

1. clever

Declension

Further reading

• “clever” in Duden online

Middle English

Noun

clever

1. Alternative form of clevere