smack

First recorded before 1000; (noun) Middle English smacke, Old English smæc; cognate with Middle Low German smak, German Geschmack “taste”; (verb) Middle English smacken “to perceive by taste, have a (specified) taste,” derivative of the noun; compare German schmacken

Words nearby smack

slyly, slype, Sm, SMA, smaak, smack, smack dab, smackdown, smacker, smackeroo, smackhead

Other definitions for smack (2 of 4)

smack²

[ smak ]

/ smæk /

verb (used with object)

to strike sharply, especially with the open hand or a flat object.

to drive or send with a sharp, resounding blow or stroke: to smack a ball over a fence.

to close and open (the lips) smartly so as to produce a sharp sound, often as a sign of relish, as in eating.

to kiss with or as with a loud sound.

verb (used without object)

to smack the lips.

to collide, come together, or strike something forcibly.

to make a sharp sound as of striking against something.

noun

a sharp, resounding blow, especially with something flat.

a smacking of the lips, as in relish or anticipation.

a resounding or loud kiss.

adverb Informal.

suddenly and violently: He rode smack up against the side of the house.

directly; straight: The street runs smack into the center of town.

Verb Phrases

smack down, Slang. to humble (an arrogant person); rebuke or criticize severely.

Origin of smack

First recorded in 1550–60; imitative; compare Dutch, Low German smakken, German (dialectal) schmacken

Other definitions for smack (3 of 4)

smack³

[ smak ]

/ smæk /

noun

Eastern U.S. a fishing vessel, especially one having a well for keeping the catch alive.

British. any of various small, fully decked, fore-and-aft-rigged vessels used for trawling or coastal trading.

Origin of smack

First recorded in 1605–15, smack is from the Dutch word smak

Other definitions for smack (4 of 4)

smack⁴

[ smak ]

/ smæk /

noun Slang.

heroin.

Origin of smack

⁴

First recorded in 1960–65; probably special use of smack¹; compare earlier slang schmeck with same sense (from Yiddish shmek “sniff, whiff”; compare Middle High German smecken (German schmecken ) “to taste”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use smack in a sentence

This year’s top engineering feats smack of the sort of sci-fi future-gazing you can find in retro issues of Popular Science.
The 100 greatest innovations of 2020|Popular Science Staff|December 2, 2020|Popular-Science
Kyra often smacks herself on the side of the head with her hand or bites her palm so hard she draws blood, said her mother, Ka Wade.
People with Developmental Disabilities Were Promised Help. Instead, They Face Delays and Denials.|by Amy Silverman for Arizona Daily Star, with data analysis by Alex Devoid, Arizona Daily Star|November 5, 2020|ProPublica
Then imagine a raging river where the water smacks into the piling and becomes turbulent.
This weird-looking plane could someday be a fast, clean option for air travel|Rob Verger|September 28, 2020|Popular-Science
DART will travel to the 780-meter asteroid Didymos, where, in the fall of 2022, it will smack into Didymos’s 160-meter moonlet Dimorphos at well over 14,000 miles per hour.
The World’s Space Agencies Are on a Quest to Deflect a (Harmless) Asteroid|Jason Dorrier|September 27, 2020|Singularity Hub

To better understand the Hyades cluster, Oh and Evans compared the speed of stars smack in the center to those escaping from it.
Milky Way’s tidal forces are shredding a nearby star cluster|Ken Croswell|August 18, 2020|Science News For Students
To the uninitiated, this might smack of poor taste and inappropriate timing.
In One Corner of Syria, Christmas Spirit Somehow Manages to Survive|Peter Schwartzstein|December 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On the first day of shooting, Kallai and his film crew found themselves smack-dab in the middle of a war zone.
Trans in the Holy Land: ‘Marzipan Flowers,’ Tal Kallai, and the Shattering of Israel’s LGBT Taboos|Itay Hod|November 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His brother Sidronio immediately took over, and the Windy City reported no shortage of smack.
Mexico’s First Lady of Murder Is on the Lam|Michael Daly|October 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the SMU study it was found that children lasted about 10 minutes after a smack before they started misbehaving again.
The Adrian Peterson Beating and the Christian Right's Love of Corporal Punishment|Amanda Marcotte|September 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Yes, Hillary Clinton talked some smack on Barack Obama to Jeff Goldberg in that interview.
So How Hawkish Is Hillary Clinton?|Michael Tomasky|August 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Scotch shrewdness has occasionally a certain smack of mild hypocrisy, which, however, does no harm to anyone.
Friend Mac Donald|Max O'Rell
The little bullet-headed Jim was drafted off to the workhouse school, and from thence to a small fishing-smack.
The Chequers|James Runciman
The new smack was flying a flag at her masthead, but Jim could not read well enough to make out the inscription on the flag.
The Chequers|James Runciman
On one grey Sunday morning a pretty smack came creeping through the fleet.
The Chequers|James Runciman
The skipper of the smack invited Jim to go below, and handed him a steaming mug of tea.
The Chequers|James Runciman

British Dictionary definitions for smack (1 of 4)

smack¹

/ (smæk) /

noun

a smell or flavour that is distinctive though faint

a distinctive trace or touchthe smack of corruption

a small quantity, esp a mouthful or taste

verb (intr foll by of)

to have the characteristic smell or flavour (of something)to smack of the sea

to have an element suggestive (of something)his speeches smacked of bigotry

Word Origin for smack

Old English smæc; related to Old High German smoc, Icelandic smekkr a taste, Dutch smaak

British Dictionary definitions for smack (2 of 4)

smack²

/ (smæk) /

verb

(tr) to strike or slap smartly, with or as if with the open hand

to strike or send forcibly or loudly or to be struck or sent forcibly or loudly

to open and close (the lips) loudly, esp to show pleasure

(tr) to kiss noisily

noun

a sharp resounding slap or blow with something flat, or the sound of such a blow

a loud kiss

a sharp sound made by the lips, as in enjoyment

have a smack at informal, mainly British to attempt

smack in the eye informal, mainly British a snub or setback

adverb informal

directly; squarely

with a smack; sharply and unexpectedly

Word Origin for smack

C16: from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch smacken, probably of imitative origin

British Dictionary definitions for smack (3 of 4)

smack³

/ (smæk) /

noun

a slang word for heroin

Word Origin for smack

C20: perhaps from Yiddish schmeck

British Dictionary definitions for smack (4 of 4)

smack⁴

/ (smæk) /

noun

a sailing vessel, usually sloop-rigged, used in coasting and fishing along the British coast

a fishing vessel equipped with a well for keeping the catch alive

Word Origin for smack

C17: from Low German smack or Dutch smak, of unknown origin

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

Medical definitions for smack

smack

[ smăk ]

Heroin.

smack

OTHER WORDS FOR smack

Origin of smack

Words nearby smack

Other definitions for smack (2 of 4)

Origin of smack

Other definitions for smack (3 of 4)

Origin of smack

Other definitions for smack (4 of 4)

Origin of smack

Words related to smack

How to use smack in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for smack (1 of 4)

Word Origin for smack

British Dictionary definitions for smack (2 of 4)

Word Origin for smack

British Dictionary definitions for smack (3 of 4)

Word Origin for smack

British Dictionary definitions for smack (4 of 4)

Word Origin for smack

Medical definitions for smack