Nous (British: ; US: ), sometimes equated to intellect or intelligence, is a philosophical term for the faculty of the human mind which is described in classical philosophy as necessary for understanding what is true or real. The three commonly used philosophical terms are from Greek, or , and Latin  and respectively. To describe the activity of this faculty, apart from verbs based on "understanding", the word "intellection" is sometimes used in philosophical contexts, and the Greek words noesis and noein are sometimes also used. This activity is understood in a similar way, at least in some contexts, to the modern concept intuition.