Intelligence
/ɪnˈtɛl.ɪ.dʒəns/noun
The ability to learn, understand, and apply knowledge; also, secret information or espionage.
Did you know?English intelligence comes through Old French from Latin *intelligentia*, tied to *intellegere*—literally “to pick out, discern,” the same root that gave us the idea of *understanding as selection* rather than mere memory.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*leg-
“to gather, collect, choose, pick out”
Latin
Latin
intellegere
“to understand, perceive, discern; literally “pick out between””
Latin
Latin
intelligentia
“understanding, discernment”
Old French
Old French
intelligence
“understanding; knowledge; also agreement, acquaintance”
Middle English
English
intelligence
“understanding; mental capacity; information”
Modern English
English
intelligence
“the ability to learn and reason; secret information”