schmear

American  

[shmeer] / ʃmɪər /

Also shmear, or schmeer

noun

Slang.

1. a dab, as of cream cheese, spread on a roll, bagel, or the like.

2. a number of related things, ideas, etc., resulting in a unified appearance, attitude, plan, or the like (usually used in the phrasethe whole schmear ).

3. a bribe.

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verb (used with object)

Slang.

1. to spread; smear.

   Schmear it on the bread.

2. to bribe.

schmear British  

/ ʃmɪə /

noun

1. informal a situation, matter, or affair (esp in the phrase the whole schmear )

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Etymology

Origin of schmear

First recorded in 1930–35 schmear for def. 5, and 1955–60 schmear for def. 4; apparently from Yiddish shmirn “to smear, grease”; compare Middle High German smirwen ( German schmieren ); see smear

Example Sentences

The Order: The sesame bagel is lovely on its own—or spackled with a schmear of pastrami lox cream cheese.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 9, 2026

The bread was thin and appropriately crumbly, the pate a nice thick schmear and the jalapeño provided quite a kick.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 10, 2024

Some had a thick schmear of tomato, others just a scrape of orange sauce; a few crusts had the puffy, raised edge characteristic of Neapolitan pizza, but others were flat, like Midwestern tavern pizza.

From New York Times • Jan. 31, 2023

A bagel brunch, though, deserves a schmear, which is different from that block of cream cheese.

From Salon • Mar. 12, 2022

A third option we’ve seen a lot of interest in recently is a German schmear, which is a technique where you smear mortar mixed with cement over the brick to white it out.

From Washington Post • Mar. 8, 2022