prudent

(prūd'nt)
adj.

1. Wise in handling practical matters; exercising good judgment or common sense.
2. Careful in regard to one's own interests; provident.
3. Careful about one's conduct; circumspect.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin prūdēns, prūdent-, contraction of prōvidēns, present participle of prōvidēre, to provide for. See provide.]

prudently pru'dent·ly adv.

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While prudent is a judgemental word meaning 'circumspect, judicious', prudential is merely descriptive in identifying actions and attitudes that have to do with prudence, e.g. prudential motives are motives determined by considerations of prudence. To complete the picture, prudish is an entirely distinct word and means 'affecting extreme modesty or propriety in sexual matters'.

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adjective

1. Possessing, proceeding from, or exhibiting good judgment and prudence: balanced, commonsensible, commonsensical, judicious, levelheaded, rational, reasonable, sagacious, sage, sane, sapient, sensible, sound², well-founded, well-grounded, wise¹. See reason/unreason, sane/insane.
2. Careful in the use of material resources: canny, chary, economical, frugal, provident, saving, Scotch, sparing, thrifty. See careful/careless, save/waste.
3. Trying attentively to avoid danger, risk, or error: careful, cautious, chary, circumspect, forehanded, gingerly, wary. See careful/careless.

adj

Definition: wise, sensible in action and thought
Antonyms: careless, imprudent, incautious, unwise

IN BRIEF: Careful in a sensible way.

A prudent person profits from personal experience, a wise one from the experience of others. — Dr. Joseph Collins

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For a list of words related to prudent, see:

• Moderate, Sane, Conservative, or Old-Fashioned
• Proper, Courteous, Refined, or Puritanical

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See words rhyming with "prudent."

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - klog, forsigtig, velbetænkt

Nederlands (Dutch)
voorzichtig, verstandig

Français (French)
adj. - prudent

Deutsch (German)
adj. - vorsichtig, überlegt

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - γνωστικός, συνετός, σώφρων, φρόνιμος

Italiano (Italian)
prudente

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - prudente

Русский (Russian)
благоразумный, расчетливый

Español (Spanish)
adj. - prudente

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - klok, försiktig, förståndig, välbetänkt

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
审慎的, 小心的, 节俭的, 精明的, 善于经营的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 審慎的, 小心的, 節儉的, 精明的, 善於經營的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 신중한, 조심성 있는

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 慎重な, 分別のある, 倹約する

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) محترس, , فطين, متدبر للعواقب, عاقل, غير مبذر‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮זהיר, פיקח, שוקל צעדיו‬

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