Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4
#128437 05/10/04 12:36 PM
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
R
stranger
OP Offline
stranger
R
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
What is the difference between the two?


Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
At the risk of getting lost at sea in metaphor, I suggest: intellect is the motor, and intelligence is the power delivered by this motor (for better or worse).


Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
R
stranger
OP Offline
stranger
R
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
Thank You for your reply. It seems to make sense. Where my struggle began from was the usage of the adjectives, i.e. what would be the distinction between say an intelligent person and an intellectual person. How, if at all, does the motor methaphor transfer to that situation?
An intellectual person has the ability(motor) and intelligent person actually uses it(delivering the power)?
(please excuse the overuse of parentheses and question marks)


Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,475
J
veteran
Offline
veteran
J
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,475
To me, intellectual has a slightly more pejorative connotation to it than intelligent. Interestingly, the etymologies show that both words come from the same verb in Latin: intellect is from the past particple and intelligence is from the present particple. You might want to look at the synonym section of this entry:

http://www.bartleby.com/61/84/I0178400.html


Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Welcome, Reebecca.

"Intellect" suggests to me a type of intelligence. You can be intelligent without being intellectual, but not vice-versa.


Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Oh, I dunno, ASp. I've met a lot of intellectuals who didn't seem to be all that intelligent ... an intellectual will think and think about a problem but may well still come to a nonsensical although potentially strictly logical answer.

Welcome, Reebecca. Good question.


Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 2,661
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 2,661
...nonsensical althought potentially strictly logical answer.

Just as a *sensical answer may be potentially strictly illogical!

*******

I like wsieber's perspective. Neither function on thier own plane without the operation of the other. What one does with either is not (really) part of the difference between them.


Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
both words come from the same verb in Latin

Speaking of double-dipping.


Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
intellectual has a slightly more pejorative connotation to it than intelligent - Yeahbut, this is a secondary evolution of the word "intellectual", quite separate from "intellect". I even suspect that "intellectual", as a noun, entered English independently from French, whereupon it was devalued by the pragmatists.


Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
R
stranger
OP Offline
stranger
R
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4
Thanks for all your replies.
I did try to work from the roots of the word: intelligence coming from the present participle of inter- and legere perhaps denoting the present action of collecting/perceiving 'knowledge', while intellect, from the past participle of the same Latin term, perhaps referring more to the processing of that knowledge that follows its collection/perception... all in all it lead me into a big mental knot and, ultimately, to this board.
I would however have to disagree with jheem-based on gut feeling, I definitely would not name intellectual as the pejorative of the two.



Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 444 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5