Word of the Day · Saturday, September 5, 2026
Phronesis
/fro-NEE-sis/ · noun (Greek)
Practical wisdom; the capacity to deliberate well about what is good for human life, applied to particular circumstances.
Where it comes from
From φρόνησις, derived from φρονεῖν (phronein, 'to think, to understand'). Aristotle's term for the intellectual virtue of practical reasoning — knowing what to do, when, and how.
A small question
Aristotle distinguishes phronesis sharply from sophia (theoretical wisdom). What is the key difference?