savvy
/ˈsæv.i/adjective, verb, noun
savvy is spelled S-A-V-V-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.6 times per million words in written English, the 13,695th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, savvy means “Shrewd, well-informed and perceptive” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in savvy?
| Letters | 5: S-A-V-V-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.6 times per million words; the 13,695th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is savvy?
Savvy appears 3.6 times per million words in written English, the 13,695th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce savvy?
- US /ˈsæv.i/
Savvy has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-savvy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of savvy
- savvier comparative
- savviest superlative
- savvies present, singular, he/she/it
- savvying participle, present
- savvied participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does savvy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
informalShrewd, well-informed and perceptive.
verb
- 1
informalTo understand.
noun
- 1
informalShrewdness.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Savvy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | futé, malin , piger |
| German | clever, klug, schlau , kapieren, schnallen, verstehen |
| Portuguese | sábio, sabido , saber, sacar |
| Spanish | sabio, canchero, sabido, sabedor, avezado, conocedor |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does savvy come from?
Alteration of save, sabi (“to know”) (in English-based creoles and pidgins), from Portuguese sabe (“[she/he] knows”), from saber (“to know”), from Latin sapere (“to taste; to know”). First appears c. 1785 in a dictionary by Francis Grose, as a noun, “practical sense, intelligence”; also a verb, “to know, to understand”. The adjective is first recorded 1905, from the noun.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).