There is a lot of variance in how words are used, so I'm not going to say you're wrong here. However, my usage of the following words deviate from yours: * in

There is a lot of variance in how words are used, so I'm not going to say you're wrong here. However, my usage of the following words deviate from yours: * intelligence - raw intellect, having absolutely nothing to do with anything ever learned * smarts - synonym for raw intellect, but often more on the 'crafty' side of raw intellect * ability - short for 'capabilities', and is a merge of 'intelligence' and 'learned information'. Information is useless without intellect, and intellect is vastly reduced in capability without learned information. Ability is a metric for these two conjoined. 'Skilled' fits here too. So from where I sit, you never get "smarter" as you age. You do however grow your abilities, you may become "wise", and skilled. By the way, agree 100% with the context of what you're saying. And just passing on term usage from another geolocation.