Intuition

Immediate understanding or judgment without conscious reasoning.

Reach for it when naming a rapid sense that can guide attention before verification

Her intuition pointed to the western wall, and the moisture readings confirmed it.

• everyday

  instinct

  an immediate tendency or response is the focus

  not when Instinct can be innate or bodily and less informed by experience.

• professional

  insight

  a useful understanding reveals how something works

  not when Insight can follow analysis and is not necessarily intuitive.

• professional

  judgment

  experience supports a practical conclusion

  not when Judgment may be deliberate and reasoned rather than immediate.

• formal

  perception

  subtle awareness of a situation is central

  not when Perception concerns noticing and may stop before a conclusion.

• literary

  sixth sense

  dramatic language presents perception beyond ordinary cues

  not when Sixth sense can sound supernatural and should not describe expertise as magic.

A particular impression reached in that way.

Reach for it when describing one felt conclusion rather than a general faculty

His intuition was that the shorter queue reflected a hidden access problem.

• playful

  gut feeling

  informal speech should admit a felt judgment

  not when A decision record needs more precision than gut feeling and should not excuse unsupported certainty.

• everyday

  hunch

  a tentative unexplained impression deserves modest wording

  not when Hunch is weaker and often explicitly speculative.

• analysis
• calculation
• certainty

• trust intuition

  She chose to trust intuition only long enough to decide what to measure next.

• strong intuition

  A strong intuition is still not a substitute for checking the load.

• expert intuition

  Expert intuition can be valuable within the conditions that shaped the expertise.

Intuition is not self-validating. The record distinguishes a useful prompt from verified knowledge.