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Prudence and compromise are necessary means, but every man should have an impudent end which he will not compromise.
Charles Horton Cooley

Meaning of "prudence" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF PRUDENCE

prudence  [ˈpruːdəns] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF PRUDENCE

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Prudence is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES PRUDENCE MEAN IN ENGLISH?

prudence

Prudence

Prudence is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason. It is classically considered to be a virtue, and in particular one of the four Cardinal virtues. The word comes from Old French prudence, from Latin prudentia. It is often associated with wisdom, insight, and knowledge. In this case, the virtue is the ability to judge between virtuous and vicious actions, not only in a general sense, but with regard to appropriate actions at a given time and place. Although prudence itself does not perform any actions, and is concerned solely with knowledge, all virtues had to be regulated by it. Distinguishing when acts are courageous, as opposed to reckless or cowardly, for instance, is an act of prudence, and for this reason it is classified as a cardinal virtue. Although prudence would be applied to any such judgment, the more difficult tasks, which distinguish a person as prudent, are those in which various goods have to be weighed against each other, as when a person is determining what would be best to give charitable donations, or how to punish a child so as to prevent repeating an offense.

Definition of prudence in the English dictionary

The first definition of prudence in the dictionary is caution in practical affairs; discretion or circumspection. Other definition of prudence is care taken in the management of one's resources. Prudence is also consideration for one's own interests.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH PRUDENCE


accedence
əkˈsiːdəns
accordance
əˈkɔːdəns
antecedence
ˌæntɪˈsiːdəns
attendance
əˈtɛndəns
concordance
kənˈkɔːdəns
confidence
ˈkɒnfɪdəns
correspondence
ˌkɒrɪˈspɒndəns
credence
ˈkriːdəns
discordance
dɪsˈkɔːdəns
evidence
ˈɛvɪdəns
guidance
ˈɡaɪdəns
impedance
ɪmˈpiːdəns
imprudence
ɪmˈpruːdəns
independence
ˌɪndɪˈpɛndəns
jurisprudence
ˌdʒʊərɪsˈpruːdəns
outrecuidance
ˌuːtəˈkwiːdəns
providence
ˈprɒvɪdəns
residence
ˈrɛzɪdəns
retrocedence
ˌrɛtrəʊˈsiːdəns
supersedence
ˌsuːpəˈsiːdəns

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE PRUDENCE

prude
prudent
prudential
prudentialism
prudentialist
prudentiality
prudentially
Prudentius
prudently
prudery
prudish
prudishly
prudishness
pruina
pruinose
prunable
prune
prunella
prunelle
prunello

WORDS THAT END LIKE PRUDENCE

angle of incidence
at your convenience
cadence
coincidence
crisis of confidence
decadence
Declaration of Independence
dependence
direct evidence
documentary evidence
hall of residence
in confidence
in evidence
in residence
incidence
interdependence
letters of credence
precedence
self-confidence
transcendence
vote of no confidence

Synonyms and antonyms of prudence in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

SYNONYMS OF «PRUDENCE»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «prudence» and belong to the same grammatical category.
synonyms of prudence

Translation of «prudence» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF PRUDENCE

Find out the translation of prudence to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of prudence from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «prudence» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

谨慎
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

prudencia
570 millions of speakers

English

prudence
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

विवेक
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

الحكمة
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

благоразумие
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

prudência
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

দূরদর্শিতা
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

prudence
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Berhemah
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

Klugheit
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

思慮分別
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

신중함
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Prudence
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

sự khôn ngoan
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

மதிநுட்பம்
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

विवेक
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

sağduyu
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

prudenza
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

roztropność
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

розсудливість
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

prudență
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

σύνεση
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

omsigtigheid
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

försiktighet
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

klokskap
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of prudence

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «PRUDENCE»

The term «prudence» is quite widely used and occupies the 26.290 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Quite widely used
88
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «prudence» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of prudence
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «prudence».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «PRUDENCE» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «prudence» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «prudence» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about prudence

EXAMPLES

10 QUOTES WITH «PRUDENCE»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word prudence.
1
Akhenaton
Hear the words of prudence, give heed unto her counsels, and store them in thine heart; her maxims are universal, and all the virtues lean upon her; she is the guide and the mistress of human life.
2
Clara Barton
Economy, prudence, and a simple life are the sure masters of need, and will often accomplish that which, their opposites, with a fortune at hand, will fail to do.
3
Warren Bennis
Learning options will indeed mushroom for business students and leaders, but it will take prudence and shrewdness to find and utilize the best option.
4
E. F. Benson
Romance is a bird that will not sing in every bush, and love-affairs, however devoted the sentiments that inspire them, are often so business-like in the prudence with which they are conducted, that romance is reduced to a mere croaking or a disgusted silence.
5
Omar N. Bradley
If we continue to develop our technology without wisdom or prudence, our servant may prove to be our executioner.
6
Charles Horton Cooley
Prudence and compromise are necessary means, but every man should have an impudent end which he will not compromise.
7
Democritus
Do not trust all men, but trust men of worth; the former course is silly, the latter a mark of prudence.
8
John Dryden
It is madness to make fortune the mistress of events, because by herself she is nothing and is ruled by prudence.
9
Henry Fielding
The prudence of the best heads is often defeated by the tenderness of the best hearts.
10
Francesco Guicciardini
Let no one trust so entirely to natural prudence as to persuade himself that it will suffice to guide him without help from experience.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «PRUDENCE»

Discover the use of prudence in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to prudence and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Prudence:
Paperback reissue of one volume of the English Dominicans' Latin/English edition of Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae.
Thomas Aquinas, Thomas Gilby, 2006
2
Jane And Prudence
Even an umpteenth reading this weekend was punctuated by gasps of joy, laughter and wonder that this lovely book should remain so fresh, funny and true to life' Jilly Cooper 'The setting of this very funny novel, one of Barbara Pym's ...
Barbara Pym, 2011
3
Prudence
Explains the virtue of prudence, or thinking carefully before acting, and describes ways to show prudence at home, at school, and in the community.
Lucia Raatma, 2000
4
Power Versus Prudence: Why Nations Forgo Nuclear Weapons
In Power versus Prudence Paul develops a prudential-realist model, arguing that a nation's national nuclear choices depend on specific regional security contexts: the non-great power states most likely to forgo nuclear weapons are those in ...
T. V. Paul, 2000
5
Dear Prudence
A mental patient escapes an institution and seeks to end her life but an angel intervenes and guides her to a better place.
Amanda Grieme, 2011
6
The Concept of Woman: The Early Humanist Reformation, ...
This seminal work is the second volume of a widely praised study of the concept of woman in the history of Western philosophy.
Prudence Allen, 2005
7
Prudence
Would Her Tender Heart Lead Her Into His Arms? No one was more aware of their position in life than governess Prudence Hursley.
Elizabeth Bailey, 2012
8
Cleopatra: The Last Pharaoh
Accessible and affordable illustrated biography
Prudence J. Jones, 2006
9
Prudence's Goodnight Book
Young readers can find out where, why, and when Prudence sleeps and discover where other animals lay their heads at night.
‎2000
10
Passion, Prudence, and Virtue in Shakespearean Drama
>
Unhae Park Langis, 2011

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «PRUDENCE»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term prudence is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Prudence Hilburn: Sweet or savory, fried pies make for perfect …
When the Southern cuisine is mentioned, fried foods usually come to mind. If a food can be fried, we Southerners probably will try it. In addition to our signature ... «Fall River Herald News, Jun 15»
2
NOAA awards grant to protect Prudence Island land
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has awarded a grant to protect 103 acres of land on Prudence Island from ... «WPRI 12 Eyewitness News, May 15»
3
Exercise financial prudence: Parrikar to Armed Forces
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today asked the Army, Air Force and the Navy to exercise "financial prudence" and optimise all available resources even as ... «Daily News & Analysis, Apr 15»
4
Woman who inspired The Beatles' 'Dear Prudence' once dated …
Prudence Farrow (front left) with Beatles Ringo Starr (center) and Paul McCartney (right) and their wives at an Indian ashram in 1968. Photo: Colin Harrison/ ... «New York Post, Mar 15»
5
Schlumberger sees prudence as new normal for US shale oil
"Going forward, we believe financial prudence, where investments are limited to the cash flow generated by. production, will be the new normal for U.S. tight-oil ... «Reuters, Mar 15»
6
One Big Happy react: Too one-note, not enough happy
This woman, Prudence, is played by Kelly Brook, who's more known for her modeling career than her acting one—and that shows: Brook turns Prudence into a ... «Entertainment Weekly, Mar 15»
7
Bill Gross: Fed's new word is prudence
While the Federal Reserve dropped "patient" from its statement, the central bank telegraphed a new word Wednesday: prudence, bond man Bill Gross said. «CNBC, Mar 15»
8
'One Big Happy' and 'Undateable': Why one sitcom stinks and the …
Just as fertilization occurs, Nick announces his quicky engagement to Prudence (Kelly Brook), a free-spirited British bird he just met in a bar. With her visa set to ... «Washington Post, Mar 15»
9
Prisoners Of War And Ojibwe Reservation Make Unlikely Neighbors …
David Treuer's latest novel Prudence follows a young man who returns home to visit his family on an Ojibwe reservation before he joins the war as a bombardier. «NPR, Feb 15»
10
A Few Wise Moves Lift 'Prudence' From Melodrama To Something …
Don't fuss too much about the woman left dead in the room above the village bar. Poor Prudence may lend her name to the novel's title, but, splayed alone as ... «NPR, Feb 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Prudence [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/prudence>. Jun 2026 ».
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