smooth
Americanadjective
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free from projections or unevenness of surface; not rough.
smooth wood; a smooth road.
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generally flat or unruffled, as a calm sea.
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free from hairs or a hairy growth.
a smooth cheek.
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of uniform consistency; free from lumps, as a batter, sauce, etc.
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free from or proceeding without abrupt curves, bends, etc..
a smooth ride.
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allowing or having an even, uninterrupted movement or flow.
smooth driving.
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easy and uniform, as motion or the working of a machine.
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having projections worn away.
a smooth tire casing.
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free from hindrances or difficulties.
a smooth day at the office.
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noting a metal file having the minimum commercial grade of coarseness for a single-cut file.
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undisturbed, tranquil, or equable, as the feelings, temper, etc.; serene.
a smooth disposition.
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elegant, easy, or polished.
smooth manners.
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ingratiatingly polite or suave.
That salesman is a smooth talker.
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free from harshness, sharpness, or bite; bland or mellow, as cheese or wine.
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not harsh to the ear, as sound.
the smooth music of a ballroom dance band.
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Phonetics. without aspiration.
adverb
verb (used with object)
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to make smooth of surface, as by scraping, planing, or pressing.
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to remove (projections, ridges, wrinkles, etc.) in making something smooth (often followed by away orout ).
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to free from difficulties.
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to remove (obstacles) from a path (often followed byaway ).
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to make more polished, elegant, or agreeable, as wording or manners.
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to tranquilize, calm, or soothe (a person, the feelings, etc.).
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Mathematics. to simplify (an expression) by substituting approximate or certain known values for the variables.
noun
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act of smoothing.
She adjusted the folds with a smooth of her hand.
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something that is smooth; a smooth part or place.
through the rough and the smooth.
verb phrase
adjective
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resting in the same plane; without bends or irregularities
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silky to the touch
smooth velvet
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lacking roughness of surface; flat
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tranquil or unruffled
smooth temper
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lacking obstructions or difficulties
-
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suave or persuasive, esp as suggestive of insincerity
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( in combination )
smooth-tongued
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(of the skin) free from hair
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of uniform consistency
smooth batter
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not erratic; free from jolts
smooth driving
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not harsh or astringent
a smooth wine
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having all projections worn away
smooth tyres
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maths (of a curve) differentiable at every point
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phonetics without preliminary or simultaneous aspiration
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gentle to the ear; flowing
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physics (of a plane, surface, etc) regarded as being frictionless
adverb
verb
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to make or become flattened or without roughness or obstructions
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to take or rub (away) in order to make smooth
she smoothed out the creases in her dress
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to make calm; soothe
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to make easier
smooth his path
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electrical engineering to remove alternating current ripple from the output of a direct current power supply
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obsolete to make more polished or refined
noun
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the smooth part of something
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the act of smoothing
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tennis squash badminton the side of a racket on which the binding strings form a continuous line Compare rough
Related Words
See level.
Other Word Forms
- oversmooth adjective
- oversmoothly adverb
- oversmoothness noun
- presmooth verb (used with object)
- resmooth verb (used with object)
- smoothable adjective
- smoother noun
- smoothly adverb
- smoothness noun
- unsmooth adjective
- unsmoothed adjective
- unsmoothly adverb
- unsmoothness noun
Etymology
Origin of smooth
First recorded before 1050; (adjective) Middle English smothe, late Old English smōth; compare Middle English smethe, Old English smēthe “smooth”; cognate with Old Saxon smōthi; (verb) late Middle English smothen, derivative of the adjective; replacing Middle English smethen, Old English smēth(i)an
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
We would ride in beautiful cars on smooth roads to shops that sold everything and buy whatever we wanted.
From Literature
The guidance likely smoothed over any fears about a potential sales decline in 2026.
From MarketWatch
The skins feature synthetic fibers that allow for smooth sliding in the forward direction, but provide grip so the skis don’t slide backward.
From Los Angeles Times
Still, not everyone sees a smooth road ahead for bonds given the AI capex spending plans.
From MarketWatch
Another bump on a road that is never smooth.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
