Link Centre Dictionary

smart

UK/smɑːt/ US/smɑɹt/ very common informal slang
adjective (5) verb (1) noun (1)

adjective

1.
2.

elegant and stylish

  • “chic elegance”
  • “a smart new dress”
  • “a suit of voguish cut”
Synonyms
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3.

characterized by quickness and ease in learning

  • “some children are brighter in one subject than another”
  • “smart children talk earlier than the average”
Synonyms
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4.

improperly forward or bold

  • “don”
  • “;”
  • “;”
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5.

marked by smartness in dress and manners

  • “a dapper young man”
  • “a jaunty red hat”
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verb

1.

be the source of pain

Synonyms

noun

1.

a kind of pain such as that caused by a wound or a burn or a sore

Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English smert, smart, from Old English smeart (“smarting, smart, painful”), from Proto-West Germanic *smart, from Proto-Germanic *smartaz (“hurting, aching”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)merd- (“to bite, sting”). Cognate with Scots smert (“painful, smart”), Old Frisian smert (“sharp, painful”).

Phrases

  • book smart
  • heart smart
  • quick smart
  • right smart
  • smart alec
  • smart aleck
  • smart appliance
  • smart arse

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

See also

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.