Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Ingenious

Ingenious , adjective

[Latin ingeniosus, from ingenium innate or natural quality, natural capacity, genius: compare French ingénieux. See Engine.]

1.
Possessed of genius, or the faculty of invention; skillful or promp to invent; having an aptitude to contrive, or to form new combinations; as, an ingenious author, mechanic.
A man... very wise and ingenious in feats of war. — Hakluyt
Thou, king, send out For torturers ingenious. — Shakespeare
The more ingenious men are, the more apt are they to trouble themselves. — Sir W. Temple
2.
Proceeding from, pertaining to, or characterized by, genius or ingenuity; of curious design, structure, or mechanism; as, an ingenious model, or machine; an ingenious scheme, contrivance, etc.
Thus men go wrong with an ingenious skill. — Cowper
3.
Witty; shrewd; adroit; keen; sagacious; as, an ingenious reply.
4.
Mental; intellectual. [Obsolete]
A course of learning and ingenious studies. — Shakespeare