smash

American  

[smash] / smæʃ /

verb (used with object)

smashes, present (3rd person singular) smashed, past participle, past smashing present participle

1. to break to pieces with violence and often with a crashing sound, as by striking, letting fall, or dashing against something; shatter.

   He smashed the vase against the wall.

2. to defeat, disappoint, or disillusion utterly.

3. to hit or strike (someone or something) with force.

4. to overthrow or destroy something considered as harmful.

   They smashed the drug racket.

5. to ruin financially.

   The depression smashed him.

   Synonyms:

   bankrupt

6. Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis. to hit (a ball or shuttlecock) overhead or overhand with a hard downward motion, causing the shot to move very swiftly and to strike the ground or table usually at a sharp angle.

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verb (used without object)

smashes, present (3rd person singular) smashed, past participle, past smashing present participle

1. to break to pieces from a violent blow or collision.

2. to dash with a shattering or crushing force or with great violence; crash (usually followed by against, into, through, etc.).

3. to become financially ruined or bankrupt (often followed byup ).

4. to flatten and compress the signatures of a book in a press before binding.

noun

smashes plural

1. the act or an instance of smashing or shattering.

   Synonyms:

   crash

2. the sound of such a smash.

3. a blow, hit, or slap.

4. a destructive collision, as between automobiles.

5. a smashed or shattered condition.

6. a process or state of collapse, ruin, or destruction.

   the total smash that another war would surely bring.

7. financial failure or ruin.

8. Informal. smash hit.

9. a drink made of brandy, or other liquor, with sugar, water, mint, and ice.

10. Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis.

    1. an overhead or overhand stroke in which the ball or shuttlecock is hit with a hard, downward motion causing it to move very swiftly and to strike the ground or table usually at a sharp angle.

    2. a ball hit with such a stroke.

adjective

1. of, relating to, or constituting a great success.

   That composer has written many smash tunes.

smash British  

/ smæʃ /

verb

1. to break into pieces violently and usually noisily

2. to throw or crash (against) vigorously, causing shattering

   he smashed the equipment

   it smashed against the wall

3. (tr) to hit forcefully and suddenly

4. (tr) tennis squash badminton to hit (the ball) fast and powerfully, esp with an overhead stroke

5. (tr) to defeat or wreck (persons, theories, etc)

6. (tr) to make bankrupt

7. (intr) to collide violently; crash

8. to go bankrupt

9. informal to beat someone severely

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noun

1. an act, instance, or sound of smashing or the state of being smashed

2. a violent collision, esp of vehicles

3. a total failure or collapse, as of a business

4. tennis squash badminton a fast and powerful overhead stroke

5. informal

   1. something having popular success

   2. ( in combination )

      smash-hit

6. slang loose change; coins

adverb

1. with a smash

Synonym Usage

See break.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• smashable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• smashes
  plural

Participles

• smashing
  present
• smashed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• smash
  simple
• smashes
  simple
• have smashed
  perfect
• has smashed
  perfect
• am smashing
  progressive
• are smashing
  progressive
• is smashing
  progressive
• have been smashing
  perfect progressive
• has been smashing
  perfect progressive

Past

• smashed
  simple
• had smashed
  perfect
• was smashing
  progressive
• were smashing
  progressive
• had been smashing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will smash
  simple
• will have smashed
  perfect
• will be smashing
  progressive
• will have been smashing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of smash

1690–1700; perhaps blend of smack ² and mash ¹

Explanation

To smash something is to hit or throw it so hard that it breaks or is hurt. It's important to pay careful attention while you're driving so you don't smash into the car in front of you. A running child can smash into her friend and knock her down, and an angry chef can smash a plate by throwing it on the floor. In the latter example, there's the additional meaning of "break into pieces." A smash can be a car accident, but it can also be a "great big success," like a TV series that starts slow but turns out to be a smash. This "hit" meaning dates from 1920s reviews of Broadway plays.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

smash smashes smashed smashing

The TV adaptation of “Heated Rivalry,” the forbidden love story of two gay pro-hockey players, became a recent smash for HBO Max.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Yet Dean brought a fresh, easy-wearing charm to singles such as the Hot 100 smash “Man I Need,” a Whitney Houston-caliber banger that heralded an artfully emotive record.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

Even if Christopher Nolan‘s film adaptation of “The Odyssey” is a smash hit, Matt Damon doesn’t think we’ll see a boom in epics of a similar scale.

From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026

Tottenham Hotspur are set to smash their transfer record for a second time this week after agreeing a deal worth up to £100m with Newcastle United for midfielder Sandro Tonali.

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

And I entered the next room just as the upper deck fell with a groaning smash.

From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia

The vehicle, with the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag affixed to its top, then smashes through the tyre-and-barricade wall, leaping into the air and speeding on.

From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026

Complications commence when a space research vessel smashes into Prodigy Corp.-controlled Bangkok.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026

When a pianist smashes a bunch of keys at once, he replies, from far away, “That’s every note except F sharp.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026

Dangerously, it takes car smashes for the problematic side of the former world number one's life to be revealed.

From BBC ● Mar. 30, 2026

Every rock smashes into everything else and breaks.

From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri

In a video which went viral, he commanded an infantry vehicle as it smashed through a makeshift barricade set up by pro-Moscow forces in the southern city of Mariupol.

From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026

U.S. viewership of this World Cup has smashed prior records.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

Josh Kerr is pictured celebrating after he smashed the long-standing men's mile world record at the London Diamond League yesterday.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

Jos Buttler smashed a majestic 131 to lead England to the top of the world rankings with a dominant 56-run win over India in the fifth T20 at Southampton.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

We pushed away as the creature smashed into the rock.

From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda

A thought too for Weatherley, who finished as the leading scorer in the competition with 591, and also became the leading run-scorer on Finals Day with 163, smashing Luke Wright's record of 125 from 2018.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

The World Baseball Classic was a smashing success this year, even as the United States started a rookie pitcher in the championship game.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026

Across the strait, China has also warned of "significant impact" from the typhoon that could move northward after smashing into the south-eastern Fujian province.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

An increase in solar wind and particles, known as a solar storm, can cause major disruptions by smashing through the magnetosphere.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

But instead of ripping the ropes out of their hands and smashing the canoes against the rocks, the force of the current kept the canoes pinned underwater.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

Related Words

• bang
• belt
• blast
• burst
• collide
• crack
• crash
• crush
• demolish
• fracture
• hit
• shatter
• slam
• trash