smart
verb (used without object)
to be a source of sharp, local, and usually superficial pain, as a wound.
smart
American
[smahrt]
/ smɑrt /
verb (used without object)
-
smarts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
smarted,
past participle, past
-
smarting
present participle
-
to be a source of sharp, local, and usually superficial pain, as a wound.
-
to be the cause of a sharp, stinging pain, as an irritating application, a blow, etc.
-
to feel a sharp, stinging pain, as in a wound.
-
to suffer keenly from wounded feelings.
She smarted under their criticism.
-
to feel shame or remorse or to suffer in punishment or in return for something.
verb (used with object)
-
smarts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
smarted,
past participle, past
-
smarting
present participle
adjective
-
smarter,
comparative
-
smartest
superlative
-
quick or prompt in action, as persons.
-
having or showing quick intelligence or ready mental capability.
a smart student.
- Antonyms:
- stupid
-
shrewd or sharp, as a person in dealing with others or as in business dealings.
a smart businessman.
-
clever, witty, or readily effective, as a speaker, speech, rejoinder, etc.
-
dashingly or impressively neat or trim in appearance, as persons, dress, etc.
- Synonyms:
- showy, pretentious, spruce
-
socially elegant; sophisticated or fashionable.
the smart crowd.
- Synonyms:
- chic
-
saucy; pert.
smart remarks.
-
sharply brisk, vigorous, or active.
to walk with smart steps.
- Synonyms:
- energetic
-
sharply severe, as a blow, stroke, etc.
-
sharp or keen.
a smart pain.
- Synonyms:
- penetrating, poignant
-
Digital Technology.
-
(of a machine, system, etc.) equipped with electronic control mechanisms, software programs, etc., and capable of remote, automated, and seemingly intelligent operation.
smart copiers;
smart weapons;
a smart thermostat.
-
equipped with microprocessors, as for data processing, internet access, etc. (usually used in combination).
a smartphone;
a smartwatch.
-
-
having properties that can be changed in response to stimuli or environmental conditions; self-regulating.
smart fabrics that respond to temperature or light.
-
Older Use. considerable; fairly large.
adverb
noun
-
a sharp local pain, usually superficial, as from a wound, blow, or sting.
-
keen mental suffering, as from wounded feelings, affliction, grievous loss, etc.
-
Slang. smarts, intelligence; common sense.
He never had the smarts to use his opportunities.
smart
1
British
/ smɑːt /
adjective
-
astute, as in business; clever or bright
-
quick, witty, and often impertinent in speech
a smart talker
-
fashionable; chic
a smart hotel
-
well-kept; neat
-
causing a sharp stinging pain
-
vigorous or brisk
-
dialect considerable or numerous
a smart price
-
(of systems) operating as if by human intelligence by using automatic computer control
-
(of a projectile or bomb) containing a device that allows it to be guided to its target
verb
-
to feel, cause, or be the source of a sharp stinging physical pain or keen mental distress
a nettle sting smarts
he smarted under their abuse
-
(often foll by for) to suffer a harsh penalty
noun
adverb
Smart
2
British
/ smɑːt /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
smartnessnoun
-
supersmartnessnoun
-
smartishadjective
-
supersmartadjective
-
ultrasmartadjective
-
unsmartadjective
-
unsmartingadjective
-
smartinglyadverb
-
smartlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
smartsimple
-
smartssimple
-
have smartedperfect
-
has smartedperfect
-
am smartingprogressive
-
are smartingprogressive
-
is smartingprogressive
-
have been smartingperfect progressive
-
has been smartingperfect progressive
Past
-
smartedsimple
-
had smartedperfect
-
was smartingprogressive
-
were smartingprogressive
-
had been smartingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of smart
First recorded before 1050; Middle English (verb) smerten, Old English -smeortan (only in the compound fyrsmeortende “painful like fire”), cognate with Old High German smerzan ( German schmerzen ); (adjective) Middle English smerte, smart “quick, prompt, sharp,” originally, “biting, smarting,” late Old English smearte, akin to the verb; (adverb and noun) Middle English smerte, derivative of the adjective
Explanation
Although smart is most often used to describe someone who is intelligent, you can also call someone a smart, chic dresser or a smart, sassy wisecracker. Smart often implies something good, but not always. If someone cautions you, "Don't be smart with me!" — they are demanding that you stop acting so bold and rude. As a verb, if something smarts, then it hurts. If your knee smarts, then you probably whacked it. However, if someone says that you are a smart dresser or a smart thinker, you can take those comments as compliments.
Vocabulary lists containing smart
The Sound and the Fury
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Novel Study: The Outsiders, Chapters 1–5
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Words to Describe a Teacher
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
“The overarching lesson for the foreign business community is proceed cautiously and be smart about how you do business within China and who you do it with,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
“There’s the opportunity theoretically, but it’s really more about how smart they are on the draft picks, how smart they are on building the team.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
This week at the international home appliance exhibition IFA 2026 in Berlin, appliance maker Miele unveiled a smart dishwasher.
From Slate ● Sep. 14, 2026
The FBI warns investors about the methods scammers use to huckster successful, smart people.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Grandpa finally got hold of himself and said, “I figured that monkey was smart, but I didn’t think he was that smart.”
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
For Mistral, it means the startup will get easy exposure to millions of Firefox users where Smart Window is available.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
Mozilla will use Mistral’s artificial-intelligence models to power the Firefox Smart Window AI assistant.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
Jean Smart was expected to tie a bow on her “Hacks” run with her eighth win, et voilà.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2026
Elsewhere, Jean Smart won best comedy actress for her role in the fifth and final series of Hacks.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
Smart apprentices were always getting ahead by marrying into their masters’ families.
From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes
“Fast progress today means even faster progress tomorrow, driven by tomorrow’s even smarter AIs. The progress would enter a feedback loop called ‘recursive self-improvement.’”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Two employees from Anthropic's safety team have resigned in the last two weeks, external saying humanity may not survive the race among AI companies to develop machines that are smarter than humans.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Maybe someone smarter or more charismatic than Erika Kirk would have been able to navigate these contradictions.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
So while the Model Y is a better machine in many ways—stronger, lighter, smarter, more efficient—the question is, is it enough?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
Knowing that Cluny was smarter than either of them, she wished she didn’t have this big dumb rat to corroborate the story.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
Video creator Yotam Katzor, 32, worried about what would happen when humans were no longer the smartest thing on Earth.
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
“He might be one of the smartest rookies I’ve ever seen,” Pipkins said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026
Superintelligence is the point at which AI will have surpassed even the smartest humans across several domains.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
It is the size of a pin head – yet in many ways - more efficient than a supercomputer and able to outsmart the smartest AI.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
The not-so-great news: the sagging porch and drooping roof make it pretty clear that just waltzing in and finding the right room isn’t the smartest idea.
From "Fast Pitch" by Nic Stone
New Zealand's smarts initially defused the fire and fury inside the cauldron, however.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Americans are abandoning the belief that smarts and effort are the best ways to get ahead in life, according to new research, underscoring the pessimism many people have about their chances at financial success.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026
He first impressed Sayre as a law clerk 20 years ago for his smarts and “because I spoke Spanish and he didn’t know many people of Middle Eastern heritage who did.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
If Apple can run a Siri with Google’s Gemini smarts right on its Macs, iPhones and iPads, that could set the company on the right path toward AI success—with Ternus carrying the banner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
“You certainly have enough smarts to be on the team.”
From "Out of My Mind" by Sharon M. Draper
Asia stocks hit a 11-week low on Wednesday as renewed concerns about U.S. interest rates slugged Wall Street, while investors still smarted from dismal Chinese economic data and the absence of meaningful stimulus.
From Reuters ● Aug. 16, 2023
There was much speculation about his state of mind, whether the scars of the first defeat still smarted.
From BBC ● Mar. 29, 2023
When such flourishes distressed Obama advisers, Mr. Biden — who had been his own boss for decades — smarted at having his political intuition questioned or overruled, former aides say.
From New York Times ● May 11, 2020
My hands were already blistering, I could tell; they smarted when I repositioned them on the oars.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2016
They smarted as if each of his fingers had been stung by hornets.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
But many businesses—some still smarting from being late to the AI boom—are spending big on the technology today.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Drake is smarting, and he spreads that hurt across more than an hour in the trilogy’s marquee album “Iceman.”
From Salon ● May 21, 2026
There had been an expectation that England would be smarting after the Calcutta Cup defeat, and would put it right against Ireland.
From BBC ● Feb. 27, 2026
England, without a Six Nations title since 2020, will now face a Scotland side smarting from an 18-15 opening loss to Italy in Rome.
From Barron's ● Feb. 7, 2026
Baffled and smarting from the snub, C.P. wandered down the street.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
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.
