What does 'bright' mean?

[HeartofAss]

I'm not English, help me out. I'm confused about what 'bright' means.

I thought it meant clever, but here are a few things I've seen on mumsnet:

• "My DD is very bright but she never would have passed the 11+"
• "He is often described as very bright, but his IQ is actually quite low."
• "My dd is a bright child (not exceptionally so, I think, but definitely intelligent), but she seems to have a lot of trouble getting work finished at school. Her teachers have been telling me she's slow since she was in nursery"
• "I too have a bright child who isn’t achieving at school (besides reading)."
• "All children are bright, he might not be academically bright but there will be other areas where he'll shine"
• "My 8 year old is extremely bright but dyslexic."
• "My ds is very bright (cat scores of 136), but we didn't tutor and he isn't having much success in the 11+ exam"

It seems to mean something a bit like intelligent, but not quite the same thing and definitely not the same thing as doing well at school?

What is it that children do that would be 'bright', if it isn't being quick or clever or good academically or having a high IQ?

It means switched on, quick thinking, curious. It doesn't necessarily mean academically brilliant.

Lots of those examples are just deluded parents, tbh. Bright children are clever, curious, interested in lots of things and would be expected to do well at school unless they have a learning difficulty such as dyslexia or ADHD.

It’s a hard one, but I would say it’s a child that’s engaged, excited to learn kind of thing.
So for example one of my children (SEN child), when speaking to him, comes up with great ideas and can engage in great conversation but isn’t great academically, he struggles to get anything on paper and will likely not pass many of his exams. You might say he’s bright but not academically clever.

I'd use bright to mean academically able - not genius level but top quartile maybe?

Some of those statements look to be from parents who are rather blinkered about their child's ability On the other hand specific learning disabilities such as dyslexia (other examples you posted) don't mean someone isn't academically very able.

The normal meaning of the word ‘bright’ in the context of children would be ‘academically well above average’. Given the evident level of intellect of the average British person, however, being above that level isn’t much to boast about.

It's really hard to define 'bright'. I personally think it just means clever, someone who's brain processes information well, is switched on, can understand and think through difficult concepts.

Someone can be bright but utterly useless at applying themselves in school or the work place. Someone can be bright but lazy and therefore not study enough to get good grades. They could be bright but have an ADHD brain so struggle to focus.

I think in a lot of cases on MN it means "they are my child and I love them and see all their lovely traits not just the academic achievements"

I would use it for a child who is curious about things and who picks ideas up quickly with decent recall.

I wouldn't use 'bright' as a descriptor for an adult.

If I was describing an adult who was 'bright', I would probably say 'sharp'.

Switched on and capable. It's actually quite an old fashioned term.....

I would say exactly this. A lot of children can appear bright, but might not necessarily perform well in academic tests (and vice versa!)

I think anywhere outside of mumsnet it means clever.

I'd agree with this and also add:
socially and emotionally intelligent as in they just seem to understand social cues well from an early age / innate common sense about the way the world and people work

People like to think their child is bright. The reality is often somewhat different.

I hadn't considered the ambiguity in 'bright.' I describe ds 4 as bright as he is not a genius (I have a PhD in chemistry and his dad a degree in maths, so we are not deluded about his abilities, plus there is an actual genius in his nursery room - who is not as good at jumping apparently...) but he's definitely academically intelligent.

Bright to me means intelligent in standard ways like reading, numbers, and/or the arts, quick to accept new concepts. I have no experience beyond 4 years olds though!

articulate, with pleasant facial features, joyful, enjoying and excelling at general chat

A child can be bright (quick-thinking, curious, intelligent etc) but that doesn't necessarily mean academically top of the class. They might be great verbally but struggle to get that onto paper.

I think the word ‘bright’ does imply a child is clever but that doesn’t necessarily mean academically. It could be a child who is engaged, who listens, is curious, asks questions, seeks answers, switched on, retains information well, uses correct context, a creative thinker etc.

I describe my 10yo as bright - he happily sits and reads adult novels, is curious and knowledgeable about politics and geography but is also away with the fairies 90% of the time, can’t tie his shoelaces, cross a road or hold a basic conversation. I generally think of it as meaning good at some things but bad at others. I don’t think an all rounder would generally be described as bright.

Intelligent.

However, academic intelligence is not the only type of intelligence.

Bright covers all forms.

• My 8 year old is extremely bright but dyslexic.
• My DS 27 is dyslexic but his teachers never described him as bright. They always described him as intelligent.

I'd say my youngest is bright: she's very quick to pick things up, makes connections, retains and repeats information without effort, remembers small details, is engaging and enthusiastic. People remember her. She's often very lucky, will win games or activities against the odds. She gets good grades with minimal effort but could get excellent grades if she tried. She has a short attention span.

I'd compare that to my eldest who is hard working and diligent. She gets the same grades as the youngest but does it through application. She's by no means unintelligent but her brain isn't quite as finely tuned as her sibling. She's better musically and much better at aport, so an all rounder.

It’s what would be called smart in the US - it can mean academically clever or not academic but sharp and quick.

Clever tends only to used for academic intelligence, and also often to imply someone is really smart.

It’s quite a broad term, although not as broad as some of the people you quote would like to think!

pleasant facial features ? Really?

I have never considered anyone calling a child bright was talking about how 'attractive' they are.

Lots of all rounders would be called bright, I don’t think it has anything to do with that.