Did You Know?
"Perspicuous" is based on Latin "perspicere," meaning "to see through," so that which is perspicuous is clear and understandable. "Perspicuous" has a close cousin, "perspicacious," which is used of a person with astute insight. Both words come directly from Latin adjectives that mean the same thing they do: "perspicuous" from "perspicuus," and "perspicacious" from "perspicax." Needless to say, it's possible to confuse the two. One easy way to keep out of trouble is to think of "perspicUous" as the "U" word, and remember that it means "Understandable" -- in contrast to the "A" word, "perspicAcious," which means "Astute."
