different between ingenious vs engineer

English

Alternative forms

• engenious (obsolete)

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French ingénieux, from Old French engenious, from Latin ingeni?sus (“endowed with good natural capacity, gifted with genius”), from ingenium (“innate or natural quality, natural capacity, genius”), from in- (“in”) +? gignere (“to produce”), Old Latin genere. See also engine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?d?i?nj?s/, /?n?d?i?ni?s/
• Rhymes: -i?ni?s
• Hyphenation: in?ge?nious

Adjective

ingenious (comparative more ingenious, superlative most ingenious)

1. (of a person) Displaying genius or brilliance; tending to invent.

2. (of a thing) Characterized by genius; cleverly done or contrived.

3. Witty; original; shrewd; adroit; keen; sagacious.

Usage notes

Do not confuse with ingenuous.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:witty
• See also Thesaurus:intelligent

Related terms

Translations

References

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

English

Etymology

From Middle English engyneour, engineour, from Old French engigneor, engignier, from engin or from Medieval Latin ingeniator (“one who creates or one who uses an engine”), from ingenium (“nature, native talent, skill”), from in (“in”) + gignere (“to beget, produce”), Old Latin genere; see ingenious hence "one who produces or generates [new] things". Sometimes erroneously linked with engine +? -eer (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /??nd????n??/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /??nd????n??/
• Hyphenation: en?gi?neer
• Rhymes: -??(?)

Noun

engineer (plural engineers)

1. A person who is qualified or professionally engaged in any branch of engineering.
2. (Philippines) A title given to an engineer.
3. (chiefly US) A person who controls motion of substance (such as a locomotive).
4. (nautical) A person employed in the engine room of a ship.

Usage notes

• Adjectives often applied to "engineer": agricultural, mechanical, electrical, civil, architectural, environmental, industrial, optical, nuclear, structural, chemical, military, electronic, professional, chartered, licensed, certified, qualified.

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

• ? Burmese: ??????????? (anggyangniya)
• ? Hawaiian: ?enekinia
• ? Hindi: ???????? (iñj?niyar)
• ? Japanese: ????? (enjinia)

Translations

Verb

engineer (third-person singular simple present engineers, present participle engineering, simple past and past participle engineered)

1. (transitive) To design, construct or manage something as an engineer.
2. (transitive) To alter or construct something by means of genetic engineering.
3. (transitive) To plan or achieve some goal by contrivance or guile; to wangle or finagle.
4. (transitive) To control motion of substance; to change motion.
5. (intransitive, obsolete) To work as an engineer.

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

• engineer in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• engineer in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• “engineer”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.

Anagrams

• re-engine, reengine