the ability to reason and act, esp quickly (esp in the phrase have one's wits about one)
2. (sometimes singular)
right mind, sanity (esp in the phrase out of one's wits)
3. at one's wits' end
4. five wits
5. live by one's wits
Wits in British English
(wɪts)
noun
South Africa informal
University of the Witwatersrand
Examples of 'wits' in a sentence
wits
I'M at my wits end because of my boyfriend's constant flatulence.
The Sun (2010)
I'm at my wits end.
The Sun (2016)
All related terms of 'wits'
wit
Wit is the ability to use words or ideas in an amusing , clever, and imaginative way.
wost
to be or become aware of (something)
five wits
the five senses or mental faculties
battle of wits
If you refer to a situation as a battle of wits , you mean that it involves people with opposing aims who compete with each other using their intelligence, rather than force.
a battle of wits
a competition or disagreement in which each person involved uses their intelligence and mental ability to beat their opponents
collect your wits
to make an effort to control yourself and become calm again, after you have had a frightening or shocking experience
Attic salt
refined incisive wit
halfwit
If you describe someone as a halfwit , you think they have behaved in a stupid , silly , or irresponsible way.
half-wit
a stupid or silly person; fool
at one's wits' end
at a loss to know how to proceed
at your wits' end
very worried and desperate about something and not knowing what to do about it
live by one's wits
to gain a livelihood by craftiness and cunning rather than by hard work
mother wit
native practical intelligence ; common sense
rapier wit
ability to deliver witty and cutting remarks
keep one's wits about one
to remain mentally alert ; function with undiminished acumen , as in an emergency
pit one's wits against sb
If you pit your wits against someone, you compete with them in a test of knowledge or intelligence .
pit your wits against someone
to use your intelligence to try to defeat someone
to be at your wits' end
If you say that you are at your wits ' end , you are emphasizing that you are so worried and exhausted by problems or difficulties that you do not know what to do next .
frighten the life/wits out of sb
If something frightens the life out of you, frightens the wits out of you, or frightens you out of your wits , it causes you to feel suddenly afraid or gives you a very unpleasant shock .
have to have your wits about you
to need to be alert and ready to take action in a difficult or new situation
scare someone out of their wits
to make someone very frightened or worried
have one's wits about one/keep one's wits about one
If you have your wits about you or keep your wits about you, you are alert and ready to act in a difficult situation.