Meaning & use
presence of mind
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Meaning
noununcountable
The ability to stay calm and think clearly in a sudden difficult or dangerous situation.
Grammar: Uncountable, usually with 'the': 'She had the presence of mind to call for help.'
Patterns
- have the presence of mind to do something
- show presence of mind
- with great presence of mind
When the fire started, he had the presence of mind to switch off the gas before running out.
Thanks to the pilot's presence of mind, the passengers stayed calm during the emergency.
She showed remarkable presence of mind and wrote down the car's number plate.
Common combinations
- have the presence of mind to do something
- Luckily, I had the presence of mind to grab my passport.
- show presence of mind
- The nurse showed great presence of mind when the machine failed.
- with presence of mind
- With surprising presence of mind, he remembered the emergency number.
- lose one's presence of mind
- Even experienced drivers can lose their presence of mind in a crash.
Synonyms and how they differ
- composure
- Composure is calm self-control in general; presence of mind stresses quick, clear thinking in a crisis.
- quick-wittedness
- This focuses on thinking fast and cleverly, often in conversation, not necessarily in danger.
- level-headedness
- This means being sensible and calm over time, rather than a single sharp reaction.
Opposites
Word family
- present adjective
- In this phrase 'present' means mentally alert and focused on what is happening.
Commonly confused: presence of mind or peace of mind?
presence of mind vs peace of mind
'Peace of mind' means a feeling of safety and no worry; 'presence of mind' means thinking clearly in a sudden crisis.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses 'presence of mind' correctly.
Choose one answer.
The phrase means staying calm and thinking fast in a crisis, so 'had the presence of mind to call an ambulance' fits. Option 1 is wrong because the phrase is uncountable and not used with 'a' for future plans; options 2 and 3 treat it as something visible or a physical object.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “presence of mind”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.