adept

adept — adjective

1. very capable at carrying out a task that calls for practice, training, or quick

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

very capable at carrying out a task that calls for practice, training, or quick judgement, often in a way that looks effortless to others.

Example

Mei is adept at calming nervous patients before surgery.

adept at + -ing/noun: name a skill area

The young goalkeeper is adept at reading where the striker will shoot.

adept at + reading/spotting: noticing patterns

Common collocations
  • adept at handling
  • adept at dealing with
  • particularly adept
  • remarkably adept
  • adept in the use of
Synonyms
  • skilled

    more neutral and far more common; works without a preposition.

  • proficient

    stresses meeting a competent standard; often pairs with 'in'.

  • deft

    highlights physical or verbal nimbleness rather than overall competence.

  • skillful

    general praise; lacks the slightly bookish tone of 'adept'.

Antonyms
  • inept

    direct opposite — clumsy or hopeless at the task.

  • clumsy

    focuses on awkward physical movement rather than overall ability.

Grammar Patterns

adept at + noun/-ing

adept in + noun

Usage Note

Almost always paired with 'at' or 'in'; standalone use ('she is adept') sounds incomplete to most readers. 'At' is far more common and pairs with both nouns and -ing forms; 'in' is rarer and prefers a field, area, or place.

Common Mistakes

She is adept to fix bicycles.
She is adept at fixing bicycles.
use 'at' + -ing form, not 'to' + base verb.
He is adept of computer code.
He is adept at computer code.
the preposition is 'at' (or 'in'), never 'of'.

adept — noun

Word family

  • adeptly
    adverbC2
  • adeptness
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All five words praise a person's ability, but they differ in tone and pattern. 'Skilled' and 'skillful' are the everyday choices and work in almost any register; you can call a child skilled without sounding bookish. 'Proficient' is slightly formal and often points to meeting a recognised standard, as in 'proficient in Mandarin'. 'Deft' narrows the praise to nimble, often physical or verbal moves — a deft chef, a deft reply. 'Adept' sits between 'skilled' and 'proficient': it almost always pairs with 'at' or 'in', and suggests not just competence but a knack that looks easy. Compare: 'She is skilled at chess' (a fact), 'She is proficient at chess' (meets a standard), 'She is adept at chess' (handles it with apparent ease).

adept ↗skilled ↗proficient ↗deftskillful

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • become adept at
  • grow more adept at
  • an adept in

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Adept came into English in the early 1600s from Latin 'adeptus', the past participle of 'adipisci', meaning to reach or attain. It was first used by alchemists for someone who had supposedly attained the secret of turning metal into gold — a true master of the craft. From this narrow magical use, the word spread to mean any highly skilled person, and the adjective sense (good at something) followed soon after. The link to 'attain' still echoes today: an adept is someone who has reached a high level through effort.