smart as a whip

1. Very intelligent or clever, as in Little Brian is smart as a whip; he's only three and already learning to read. This simile alludes to the sharp crack of a whip. [Mid-1900s] Also see mind like a steel trap.

Example Sentences

“He is smart as a whip, he’s a great dog, but they surrendered him because they don’t have time for him,” Gambone said.

From Seattle Times

“He’s smart as a whip, agile, super curious and an amazing broadcaster,” said news consultant Michael Clemente, Smith’s former boss at Fox News and a longtime ABC News executive.

From Seattle Times

“I told you he’d figure out how to find me. The boy’s smart as a whip!”

From Literature

Junior was a rotund little man with a cherubic face, who was as smart as a whip and liked all over the town.

From Literature

She wrote, “She’s smart as a whip, understands so many of the issues we face well, and at a personal level, and is so articulate in her logic.”

From The New Yorker

Related Words

• able 
• active 
• deft 
• effective 
• keen 
• ready 
• sharp 
• vigorous 
• wise