Outsmart: meaning, definitions and examples

Used when someone uses their intelligence or cunning to overcome another person or situation. Often implies cleverness or trickery.

• He managed to outsmart his opponent by predicting their every move.
• The thief outsmarted the security system and got away with the valuables.

Often implies using cleverness or cunning to defeat someone or something, typically involving trickery or deception.

• She managed to outwit the scammer and protect her personal information.
• In many folk tales, the hero outwits the villain through clever tricks.

Useful when someone performs better or achieves more than someone else, often in a competitive manner.

• She always tries to outdo her colleagues at work.
• In every competition, he aims to outdo his previous record.

Applied when someone uses superior thinking or reasoning to gain an advantage over another.

• To win at chess, you need to outthink your opponent several moves ahead.
• He outthought the competition by coming up with a unique business strategy.

Best used when someone skillfully and strategically gets the upper hand in a challenging or competitive situation, often involving movement or tactics.

• The army managed to outmaneuver the enemy forces on the battlefield.
• During the debate, she outmaneuvered her opponent with sharp arguments.

Used when someone uses cleverness to defeat or trick someone else.

• She managed to outsmart the thief and get her wallet back.
• They tried to outsmart their opponents by coming up with a new strategy.

Used to refer to someone who plans and directs a complex project or scheme, often with a connotation of secrecy or ingenuity.

• The police finally caught the mastermind behind the bank robbery.
• He is the mastermind of the innovative marketing campaign.

Used to describe someone with extraordinary intellectual or creative power. Highly complimentary.

• Albert Einstein is considered a genius in the field of physics.
• Her solution to the problem was pure genius.

Often used to describe someone who is very intelligent or the main thinker in a group. Informal.

• He's the brain behind this successful project.
• We need a brain like hers to solve this complicated problem.

Used to describe a young person who is exceptionally talented or intelligent.

• Mozart was a musical prodigy, composing music at a very young age.
• The chess prodigy won against players twice his age.