smatter

[smat-er]

verb (used with object)

1. to speak (a language, words, etc.) with superficial knowledge or understanding.

2. to dabble in.

noun

1. a slight or superficial knowledge; smattering.

   She gets by with only a smatter of musical knowledge.

2. a small amount or number; smattering.

   a smatter of applause; smatters of nervous laughter.

smatter

/ ˈsmætə /

noun

1. a smattering

verb

1. rare,  (intr) to prattle

2. archaic,  (tr) to dabble in

Other Word Forms

• smatterer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of smatter¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English; further origin uncertain; perhaps from Scandinavian; Danish, Norwegian smadre “to splash, smash (to pieces),” Swedish smattra “to clatter, rattle” ( Middle Low German smetern “to chatter”), but the semantic development is unclear

Word History and Origins

Origin of smatter¹

C14 (in the sense: to prattle): of uncertain origin; compare Middle High German smetern to gossip

Example Sentences

The Thai-Cambodia conflict flared over a smattering of border temples, contested because of a vague territorial demarcation made by Cambodia's French colonial administrators in 1907.

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I worked a smattering of odd jobs—managing the front desk at the anthropology department and writing stories for the student newspaper—but the money I made wasn’t much.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Niamh Sprout wore a smattering of chunky silver rings, which complemented the long black nails she had dug into the parkway soil as Smart-McCabe did her plant demo.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Its perfect averageness makes it easy to dismiss, but it’s a painless, pleasant half-hour, with a smattering of genuine laughs.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

It’s an extremely low number, which has only been matched a smattering of times since the 1960s.

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Related Words

• blast 
• burst 
• crack 
• crush 
• dash 
• demolish 
• destroy 
• disable 
• exhaust 
• explode 
• fracture 
• impair 
• ruin 
• smash 
• snap 
• splinter 
• split 
• wreck