Sa-găc'i-ty, n.

n. [Lat. sagacitas, Fr. sagacité, Pr. sagacitat, Sp. sagacidad, It. sagacità. See supra.] The quality of being sagacious; quickness or acuteness of scent; keenness of discernment or penetration with soundness of judgment; shrewdness.

Synonyms—Penetration; shrewdness; judiciousness.—SAGACITY, PENETRATION. Penetration enables us to enter into the depths of an abstruse subject, to detect motives, plans, &c. Sagacity adds to penetration a keen, practical judgment, which enables one to guard against the designs of others, and to turn every thing to the best possible advantage. The Essays of Lord Bacon show a degree of sagacity, as well as penetration, which are found in scarcely any other work. “The proudest admirer of his own parts might consult with others, though of inferior capacity and penetration.” Watts. “Sagacity finds out the intermediate ideas, to discover what connection there is in each link of the chain, whereby the extremes are held together.” Locke.