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Meaning of Acumen | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B1
ˈækjʊmən

Definitions

  1. Quickness of perception or discernment; penetration of mind; the faculty of nice discrimination; acuity of mind.
  2. A sharp, tapering point extending from a plant.
  3. A bony, often sharp, protuberance, especially that of the ischium.

Equivalents

Examples

“"I am going to ask you a question that does not require much legal acumen to answer," said Lord Meersbrook to his attorney, when he called the next day in Lincoln's Inn;...”
“Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke.[…]A silver snaffle on a heavy leather watch guard which connected the pockets of his corduroy waistcoat, together with a huge gold stirrup in his Ascot tie, sufficiently proclaimed his tastes.[…]But withal there was a perceptible acumen about the man which was puzzling in the extreme.”
“No, no, my dear Watson! With all respect for your natural acumen, I do not think that you are quite a match for the worthy doctor.”
“Why do you think he removes their skins, Agent Starling? Enthrall me with your acumen.”
“[A]s [US president Donald Trump] turns up the pressure – calling the Fed chair [Jerome Powell] names and questioning his acumen – he’s ignited a firestorm in legal and financial circles.”
“The black star of the corolla, characteristic of the original form, the manyfloweredness of the inflorescence (often connected with [3]—4 whirls), upper leaves in the inflorescence, adpression of the acumina of the calyx, its size, the closely situated anthers, long pistils, the length of the pedicel above and below the articulation and the thickness of the pedicel dominate.”
“11. S. boyacense. Resembles S. Rybinii from which it is distinguished by the greater dissection of the leaves, the longer calyx acumens, smaller anthers and coloured corolla.”
“Finally, the acumina of all the narrowly lanceolate leaves of both species tend to be straight rather than curved.”
“Herbs with long creeping stolons; leaves with coarse white hairs, or glabrous. The arched corolla lobes and large acumens give the corolla a circular appearance with acumens standing out sharply from it. Corolla occasionally, however, substellate.”
“[…] the stem leaves lack recurved serrations on the margins, the acumina of the branch leaves are usually distinctly dentate.”
“In our opinion, specimens of I. pilifera represent a robust expression of I. sinensis with many stem and branch leaves becoming strongly concave and broadly ovate to obovate in outline, thereby intensifying the abrupt contraction of the pilaferous acumens. It is best accepted as a variety of N. comes. The length of leaf acumens is another variable character expressed by Barbella amoena. Thus, it is also better combined with the var. pilifera as a synonym.”
“They examined the characters that were used by Paris (1908) to distinguish C. japonicum Broth. ex Paris from C. tonkinense: “Les charactères invoqués par Paris [Rev. Bryol., p. 46, 1908) pour distinguer la plante du Tonkin de celle du Japon s’évanouissent à l’examen, …”, and stated that the acumina of the leaves are narrower, and that those of the amphigastria are narrower and longer in C. japonicum Broth. ex Paris than in C. tonkinense.”
“The rostrum is the anterior extension of the carapace between the eyes. It ends in a more or less acute tip, or acumen, and may have a lateral spine on each side or bear a longitudinal keel (carina) on the dorsal surface.”
“DIAGNOSIS—Rostrum usually with marginal spines, tubercles, or angles at base of acumen, and rarely with low medina carina.”
“Variations.—Most specimens examined have concave rostral margins that taper to the acumen and the rostral length is greater than the rostral width.”

CEFR level

B1
Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B1 vocabulary — intermediate level.
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