All-rounder

Posted by Word Camel on September 10, 2003

In Reply to: All-rounder posted by ESC on September 10, 2003

: : : Hi,
: : : If a person has not only fighting skills but also intellectual abilities, for example, a detective, what can I call him/her in idiomatic English?
: : : Thanks

: : A cricketer who can bat and bowl is called an all-rounder.

: The detective is book-smart and street smart. (Street smarts doesn't exactly mean skill in fighting but knowing enough to avoid trouble in the real world.)

: Clark Kent/Superman.

How about a "Renaissance man" or if he's smart but appears so tough that the intellectual side comes as a surprise to people you might think about "a diamond in the rough". Or maybe, if he capable of carrying on a normal corrispondence via e-mail, remembers birthdays, is willing to give up the TV remote and takes out the garbage without prompting, I'd suggest "too good to be true".