Not Synonymous

In American Studies last week, Doc Oc mentioned how annoyed he gets when people interchange two words that are really, completely different.  He was referring to the difference between intelligence and being well-educated.  As I thought about it, I realized I agreed with him, and I decided to see what the dictionary said.  According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the definition of intelligence is, "the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills."  The definition of well-educated is, "having or showing a high level of education." 

So having intelligence means that a person has the "ability" to learn skills and knowledge and then use them.  And well-educated means that a person has been taught at a high level of education, an example being that a well-educated person has been through college.  It seems to me that a person who is intelligent has most likely been well-educated, but a person who is well-educated is not necessarily intelligent.  Just because a person went to college doesn't mean that he or she uses and applies what he or she learned there.  

It reminds me of how when I was younger I would tell my sister, who is four years younger than I am, that I was smarter than her just because I could do a harder math problem.  But she would always tell me that it wasn't true or fair because I had learned it in school and she hadn't yet.  She would say that if she had learned it she could have done it, too.  I guess that makes her the more intelligent one, because she realized the difference.