- incisive
- I(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)II(Roget's IV) modif.1. [Sarcastic]Syn. penetrating, cutting, biting, sharp, severe; see also sarcastic .2. [Intelligent]Syn. trenchant, penetrating, perceptive, clever, bright, profound; see also intelligent 1 .Syn.- incisive is applied to speech or writing that seems to penetrate directly to the heart of the matter, resulting in a clear and unambiguous statement [ an incisive criticism ] ; trenchant implies clean-cut expression that results in sharply defined categories, differences, etc. [ a trenchant analysis ] ; cutting implies incisive qualities but also connotes such harshness or sarcasm as to hurt the feelings [ his cutting allusion to her inefficiency ] ; biting implies a caustic or stinging quality that makes a deep impression on the mind [ his biting satire ]III(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) (VOCABULARY WORD) a.[in SYE siv]sharp, penetrating to the heart of a matter.An incisive newspaper story on the homeless changed his attitude.SYN.: sharp, penetrating, trenchant, acute, cutting, biting, piercing, to the point, keen, crisp, probing.ANT.: shallow, superficial, dullIV(Roget's Thesaurus II) adjective Possessing or displaying perceptions of great accuracy and sensitivity: acute, keen1, penetrating, perceptive, probing, sensitive, sharp, trenchant. See CAREFUL, SHARP.
English dictionary for students. 2013.