Savant

[William Hupy]

This may be one of a pair of twofers that English was lucky to grab from Latin, but I am not certain and I will require the skills of a savant to assist in this endeavor. My research reveals that this is from French, savoir, meaning to know, which was derived from Latin, sapere, the root of sapient, meaning wise. Yes?

[Perry Lassiter]

Is the term's English usage limited to "idiot" savant or someone similar, who is a genius in only one or two areas? I don't think I''ve heard it used for an ordinary genius.

[William Hupy]

Perry, that is precisely what provoked my submission of the word, I was pondering that very issue while riding my bicycle and decided to explore its origin and usage. It IS stand alone. Therefore, it is proper to refer to you as a word savant.

[Slava]

Using it as an adjective, which I gather it came from, we could say things like "this is a wonderfully savant suggestion for the Goodword dictionary".