Difference Between Intelligence vs Smart
If you know anything about brain training, then you will understand that it is a concept that is part of human existence. This concept can be expressed in one’s ability to retain information, focus on something, utilize information, and so on.
However, the rate at which one person’s brain functions may be different from another, which has been proven by science to be a result of environmental influence and biological makeup.
In this post, we will be taking a look at the difference between intelligent and smart. These two concepts relate to the rate at which a person reacts to a matter. Despite having similar meanings, these two are distinctly different as we are about to show you.
Definition of Intelligence
Intelligence is simply defined as one’s innate ability to acquire knowledge. For a better understanding of this term, let us take a look at the keywords in the definition. First is “innate,” which means “inborn” or “natural.”
From the definition, this term states that a person’s level of cleverness is determined by their biological makeup or genetics, to be specific. It can be inherited from one or both parents, but the mother’s genes have more influence. According to science, a category of genes known as the “conditioned genes” is responsible for a child’s level of assimilation.
Another noteworthy keyword in the definition is the terms “acquire,” which means “to obtain” or “to get.” This term, according to the definition, can be interpreted with an important consideration.
No matter how very clever a person is, it is impossible to prove it if the person is not subjected to acquisition of knowledge. It is in the process of acquiring knowledge that one can tell how clever a person is judging by the person’s rate of assimilation.
One thing you can take away from the smart vs intelligent comparison is that the latter is not much of a practical term. It can only be expressed through a person’s actual ability to understand information in comparison to others.
Definition of Smart
Smart is defined as a person’s ability to apply prior knowledge in making decisions. The first obvious difference between smart and intelligent is that the latter is an innate ability a person is born with, while the former is an ability that can be acquired.
From the definition, you can see that it describes a person’s ability to apply acquired knowledge. This means that these two work hand in hand. Without knowledge, there would be nothing to act on.
From another point of view, this term can also be defined as an attitude that can be adopted from school, books, movies, experiences, and so on. Here is a fun observation we made from comparing these terms: “An intelligent person may not be smart, but a smart person is intelligent.”
Note that this term involves a certain level of practicality. It is a process that involves acquiring knowledge and applying the knowledge in different situations.
Main Differences Between Intelligence vs Smart
At this point, we hope you understand how both these terms are different from one another judging by their definitions. In this section, we will elaborate on their specific differences with regards to the method of acquisition, quantification, and nature.
| Basis of Comparison | Intelligence | Smart |
| Definition | One’s innate ability to acquire knowledge | A person’s ability to apply prior knowledge in making decisions |
| Refers to | Intellect of a person | Intellect, certain reactions, and appearance of a person |
| Method of acquisition | Inherited from the parent by genetic transfer | Acquired by external influence like books, experience, movies, and so on |
| Quantification | Measured by IQ tests | Not measurable |
| Nature | Not practical | Mostly practical |
Difference Between Intelligence and Smart: Conclusion
Finally, we will conclude by saying this about the intelligence vs smart comparison. The former may be appreciated by people, but it does not bring any benefits per se. Knowledge that is assimilated cannot be of help to anyone except that it is practically expressed in certain situations.
If it is expressed, the person is said to be smart. You may also be interested to know that the former can manifest in different forms like mathematics, linguistics, music, spatial, interpersonal, and so on.
