Thinker Meaning
/ˈθɪŋ.kəː/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounOne who spends time thinking, contemplating or meditating.
nounAn intellectual, such as a philosopher or theologian.
Sentence Examples
Freud's insights into human behavior led to him being honored as a profound thinker.
Between you and me, he's a shallow thinker.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The famous ____ came up with a new theory about the universe.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
He is a deep ____ who spends a lot of time reflecting on the many complex challenges of the modern world today.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English thinkere, equivalent to think + -er. Compare West Frisian tinker (“thinker”), Dutch denker (“thinker”), German Denker (“thinker”), Danish tænker (“thinker”), Swedish tänkare (“thinker”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The doer and the thinker
No allowance for the other."
— 1972, “Thick As A Brick”, Ian Anderson (lyrics), performed by Jethro Tull:
"From his studies of these thinkers and activists, Mr. Obama took what he called the “Niebuhrian” lesson that we can have “a cleareyed view of the world and the realities of cruelty and sin and greed and violence, and yet, still maintain a sense of hope and possibility, as an act of will and leap of faith.”"
— 2020 December 8, Michiko Kakutani, “Obama, the Best-Selling Author, on Reading, Writing and Radical Empathy”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
""Well, I tried to do like you and grandfather say; don't use my thinker, use imagination.""
— 2011, Arthur Kornhaber, Rosie's Miracle: A Novel, page 271:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The famous ____ came up with a new theory about the universe.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
He is a deep ____ who spends a lot of time reflecting on the many complex challenges of the modern world today.