English Meaning & Definitions
Having or showing a quick-witted intelligence or high mental capacity.
- “She is one of the smartest students in the entire engineering department.”
- “It was a smart decision to invest in renewable energy early on.”
Clean, tidy, and well-dressed; stylish or fashionable.
- “He looked very smart in his new navy blue suit.”
- “The restaurant has a smart interior with modern lighting and velvet chairs.”
To feel or cause a sharp, stinging pain.
- “My eyes began to smart from the smoke in the room.”
- “The athlete still smarts from the memory of that humiliating defeat.”
English Synonyms & Near Equivalents
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “smart”.
Derived from the Old English 'smeart', meaning 'painful, stinging, or severe.' It originally referred to a sharp, biting physical pain. Over time, the meaning evolved from 'sharp pain' to 'sharp wit' (mentally quick) and later to 'sharp appearance' (well-dressed or stylish).
Think of a 'smart' student who is 'sharp' enough to avoid the 'sting' of a bad grade.
Frequently Asked Questions About “smart”
1. What is the meaning of “smart” in English?
In English, smart (adjective) is defined as: “Having or showing a quick-witted intelligence or high mental capacity.”.
2. How do you use “smart” in a sentence?
“She is one of the smartest students in the entire engineering department.”
3. What are English synonyms of “smart”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “smart”?
Derived from the Old English 'smeart', meaning 'painful, stinging, or severe.' It originally referred to a sharp, biting physical pain. Over time, the meaning evolved from 'sharp pain' to 'sharp wit' (mentally quick) and later to 'sharp appearance' (well-dressed or stylish).
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.