genius noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com

Definition of genius noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

genius

noun
 
/ˈdʒiːniəs/
 
/ˈdʒiːniəs/
(plural geniuses)
Idioms
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  1. [uncountable] unusually great intelligence, skill or artistic ability
    • the genius of Shakespeare
    • a statesman of genius
    • Her idea was a stroke of genius.
    Extra Examples
    • In a flash of pure genius, she realized the answer to the problem.
    • She was at the peak of her creative genius.
    • a work which shows real genius
    • He was a man of great genius.
    • It's undoubtedly a work of genius.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • great
    • pure
    • real
    … of genius
    • flash
    • spark
    • stroke
    verb + genius
    • have
    • show
    genius + verb
    • lie in something
    preposition
    • of genius
    • genius for
    See full entry
  2. [countable] a person who is unusually intelligent or artistic, or who has a very high level of skill, especially in one area
    • a mathematical/comic, etc. genius
    • He's a genius at organizing people.
    • You don't have to be a genius to see that they are in love!
    Extra Examples
    • He was undoubtedly the greatest comic genius of his age.
    • Some people say that there is only ever one true genius born in each generation.
    • You're an absolute genius!
    Topics Personal qualitiesb2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • great
    • natural
    • eccentric
    See full entry
  3. [singular] genius for something/for doing something a special skill or ability
    • He had a genius for making people feel at home.
    Extra Examples
    • She has a genius for sorting things out.
    • his genius for pinpointing the absurd
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • great
    • pure
    • real
    … of genius
    • flash
    • spark
    • stroke
    verb + genius
    • have
    • show
    genius + verb
    • lie in something
    preposition
    • of genius
    • genius for
    See full entry
  4. Word Originlate Middle English: from Latin, ‘attendant spirit present from one's birth, innate ability or inclination’, from the root of gignere ‘beget’. The original sense ‘spirit attendant on a person’ gave rise to a sense ‘a person's characteristic disposition’ (late 16th cent.), which led to a sense ‘a person's natural ability’, and finally ‘exceptional natural ability’ (mid 17th cent.).
Idioms
somebody’s good/evil genius
  1. (especially British English) a person or spirit who is thought to have a good/bad influence over you
See genius in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee genius in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
previously
adverb
 
 
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