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Synonyms

sass

1 American  
[sas] / sæs /

noun

Chiefly New England, Midland, and Southern U.S.

  1. stewed fruit; fruit sauce.

  2. fresh vegetables.

sass 2 American  
[sas] / sæs /

noun

  1. impudent or disrespectful back talk.

    Both parents refuse to take any sass from their kids.

verb (used with object)

  1. to answer back in an impudent manner.

    Don't sass your mother.
sass British  
/ sæs /

noun

  1. insolent or impudent talk or behaviour

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to talk or answer back in such a way

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of sass1

First recorded in 1765–75; variant of sauce

Origin of sass2

1855–60, back formation from sassy 1

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.

Former child star Danielle Spencer, who brought sass as little sis Dee in the 1970s sitcom ‘What’s Happening!!,’ died Monday after battling cancer.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 13, 2025

He said Alice loved to perform and that the stage would provide a "space where children are going to show off their flair, their sass – and Alice had sass in bucketloads".

From BBC • Mar. 15, 2025

Linda, with equal sass, replied: "Get over it".

From BBC • Jan. 24, 2025

He can’t do that with his own brother, but with Skip, he can sass him back.

From Salon • Apr. 12, 2024

As long as I stayed with my sass and sassur, I at least had a place to sleep and food to eat, though food seemed to be getting scarcer.

From "Homeless Bird" by Gloria Whelan

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.