Meaning & use
prudence
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Meanings
noununcountable
The quality of being careful and sensible when making decisions, especially about money or risk.
Grammar: Uncountable; used without 'a' or 'an' and without a plural form.
Patterns
- prudence in something
- exercise prudence
- with prudence
She showed great prudence in saving for retirement early.
The company's prudence during the recession helped it survive.
Financial prudence means spending less than you earn.
noununcountableformal
Careful thought about the future; wisdom in practical matters.
Grammar: Also uncountable; often used in formal or literary contexts.
Patterns
- the prudence of doing something
- question the prudence of something
He questioned the prudence of investing all their savings in one stock.
Her prudence in managing the project prevented costly mistakes.
The prudence of his decision became clear only years later.
Common combinations
- financial prudence
- Financial prudence is essential for long-term security.
- exercise prudence
- You should exercise prudence when signing a contract.
- with prudence
- She handled the inheritance with prudence.
- prudence dictates
- Prudence dictates that we wait for more information.
Synonyms and how they differ
- caution
- Caution emphasizes avoiding danger or mistakes, while prudence stresses wise judgment about future consequences.
- care
- Care is a general term for attention and thoroughness; prudence specifically involves making sensible decisions.
- circumspection
- Circumspection is more formal and means looking at all sides before acting; prudence is broader and more common.
Opposites
Word family
- prudent adjective
- Acting with or showing care and thought for the future.
- prudently adverb
- In a careful and sensible way.
- imprudent adjective
- Not showing care for the future; unwise.
- prudential adjective
- Involving or showing prudence, especially in financial matters.
Commonly confused: prudence or prude? prudence or prudence (name)?
prudence vs prude
A prude is a person who is easily shocked by matters relating to sex; prudence is the quality of being careful and sensible.
prudence vs prudence (name)
Prudence is also a female given name, but the common noun meaning is the focus here.
Practice
Choose the correct word: 'The board praised her ______ in handling the budget.'
Choose one answer.
'Prudence' is the noun form needed after 'her' and before 'in handling'. 'Prudent' is an adjective, 'prudently' is an adverb, and 'prudential' is an adjective meaning relating to prudence, so none fit the noun slot.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “prudence”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.