prudent - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Inherited from Middle English prudent, from Old French prudent, from Latin prūdēns, contracted from prōvidēns (“foresight”) (English providence), the present participle of prōvideō (“to forsee; to provide for”). Unrelated to prude. Doublet of provident.

prudent (comparative more prudent, superlative most prudent)

  1. Sagacious in adapting means to ends; circumspect in action, or in determining any line of conduct.
    Synonyms: careful, considerate, discreet; see also Thesaurus:cautious
    Antonyms: see Thesaurus:careless, Thesaurus:reckless
    It is prudent to consult a physician before beginning any new exercise regimen.
    • 1864, Jules Verne, chapter 30, in Around the World in 80 Days‎[2], archived from the original on 12 April 2012:
      He did not hesitate what to do. It would be prudent to continue on to Omaha, for it would be dangerous to return to the train, which the Indians might still be engaged in pillaging.
  2. Practically wise, judicious, shrewd.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:wise
    Antonyms: see Thesaurus:foolish
    His prudent career moves reliably brought him to the top.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 22:3–3, column 2:
      A prudent man foreſeeth the euill, and hideth himſelfe: but the ſimple paſſe on, and are puniſhed.
      New International Version translation: The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
    • 2025 March 5, Dr Joseph Brennan, “Remembering Brunel's timber viaducts”, in RAIL, number 1030, page 60:
      The history of cast iron in railway bridges is much more grimly chequered. Brunel's misgivings were proved prudent, tragically, in the 1879 failure of Thomas Bouch's Tay bridge (once a monument to cast iron, now a memorial to many lives lost).
  3. (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:) Frugal; economical; not extravagant.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:frugal
    Antonyms: extravagant; see also Thesaurus:prodigal
    Only prudent expenditure may provide quality within a restrictive budget.

The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. For synonyms and antonyms you may use the templates {{[syn](/wiki/Template:synonyms#top "Template:synonyms")|en|...}} or {{[ant](/wiki/Template:antonyms#top "Template:antonyms")|en|...}}.

sagacious in adapting means to ends

practically wise, judicious, shrewd — see also prudential

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “prudent”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN, page 1420, column 1.
  2. ^ According to: “Book VII: Characters Other Than Virtue and Vice: X”, in Nicomachean Ethics, 22 October 2018: “It is impossible for the same man to be at once prudent and incontinent; for we have shown that man cannot be prudent without being at the same time morally good.”

Borrowed from Latin prūdentem. First attested in 1460.

prudent m or f (masculine and feminine plural prudents)

  1. prudent

Learned borrowing from Latin prūdentem.

prudent (feminine prudente, masculine plural prudents, feminine plural prudentes)

  1. prudent
    Antonym: imprudent

Derived from Latin prūdentem. First attested in the 12th century[1]

This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!

prudent m (feminine singular prudenta, masculine plural prudents, feminine plural prudentas)

  1. prudent
    Antonym: imprudent
  1. ^ Diccionari General de la Lenga Occitana‎[1], L’Academia occitana – Consistòri del Gai Saber, 2008-2025, page 528

Ultimately from Latin prūdentem.

prudent

  1. prudent

Borrowed from French prudent.

prudent m or n (feminine singular prudentă, masculine plural prudenți, feminine/neuter plural prudente)

  1. prudent
    Synonyms: precaut, atent, îngrijit