incisive
adjective
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Incisive has meant "impressively direct and decisive" since around 1834 and derives from the Latin verb caedere, meaning "to cut." Its linguistic kin include many cuttings from the fruitful stem caedere, such as scissors, chisel, incise ("to cut into or engrave"), excise ("to remove by cutting"), incisor ("a front tooth typically adapted for cutting"), incision ("cut" or "gash"), precise ("minutely exact"), and concise ("brief"). Incisive also carries a couple of lesser-known literal meanings relating to cutting: "having a cutting edge or piercing point" (as in "incisive fangs"), and, in dentistry, "of, relating to, or situated near the incisors."
Examples of incisive in a Sentence
Travis Bean, Forbes.com, 23 July 2025
Longtime fans came to expect Farrell, wine bottle in hand, bantering and sometimes raging between songs, but his perspective was almost always incisive and entertaining.
—Tom Tapp, Deadline, 16 July 2025
Her wide-ranging symphony of essays on Black womanhood is a treat—incisive, intellectual, intimate, funny, and formally inventive.
—Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 24 June 2025
Despite having a two-goal lead, PSG didn’t let up and in the 24th minute, Les Parisiens had another goal after a trademark incisive passing move cut through the Real squad, leaving Achraf Hakimi the easiest of tasks to set up Ruiz for his second of the game.
—Ben Morse, CNN Money, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for incisive
Cite this Entry
“Incisive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incisive. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.
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incisive
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incisive
adjective
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