Word.ws English Dictionary

having a head on one's shoulders

having a head on one's shoulders is the present participle and gerund of have a head on one's shoulders.

Meaning of have a head on one's shoulders

Verb

have a head on one's shoulders (third-person singular simple present has a head on one's shoulders, present participle having a head on one's shoulders, simple past and past participle had a head on one's shoulders)

  1. To have good sense or judgement.
    • "You'd best keep the tatts till he's drunk," said Killigrew drily, "for I think you'll find my lord has a head on his shoulders when he's sober."1897, Frances Heath Freshfield, The Wrothams of Wrotham Court, page 73

Questions about having a head on one's shoulders

What is having a head on one's shoulders the present participle and gerund of?
Having a head on one's shoulders is the present participle and gerund of have a head on one's shoulders.

Words near having a head on one's shoulders in the dictionary

  1. having a hand in
  2. having a handle on
  3. having a hard time
  4. having a hard time of it
  5. having a head for
  6. having a head on one's shoulders
  7. having a heart
  8. having a jag on
  9. having a laugh
  10. having a lend of
  11. having a listen

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: having a head on one's shoulders (page history and authors); have a head on one's shoulders (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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