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.
quick or prompt in action, as persons.
having or showing quick intelligence or ready mental capability.
a smart student.
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.
socially elegant; sophisticated or fashionable.
the smart crowd.
saucy; pert.
smart remarks.
sharply brisk, vigorous, or active.
to walk with smart steps.
sharply severe, as a blow, stroke, etc.
sharp or keen.
a smart pain.
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.
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.
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
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
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
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.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As a child, she tried to please him by memorizing his favorite songs and being smart and competent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
For 44 years, the smart move was to lend money to the United States government for 30 years at a fixed rate.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
The newly discovered buoyancy system could also contribute to efforts to develop smart materials made with resilin.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 27, 2026
On it, smart cameras installed around his home relayed images of his house, now under clear blue skies, with the hosepipe in the yard unravelled where he left it.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
“And the crow was like, ‘Fine, you’re so smart, you play!’
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
French startup My Smart Book launched something similar in mid-April.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Smart Play is yet another “generational change,” Donaldson says, and Lego plans to introduce hundreds of sets using the interactive technology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
A finance professor at London Business School, he is the author of the forthcoming book, “The Madness of Markets: Why Smart Investors Make Crazy Decisions and How to Exploit Them.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Oh gosh, there’s so many people whose work I admire, but I think the person that I just have so much awe and admiration for is Jean Smart.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
“Adina’s been teaching us stuff at Smart School. Like about geography and real estate companies and feminism,” Tiara explained to the pirates.
From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray
And they’ve gotten smarter than the used-gum, spit-cup abstinence proponents of my youth.
From Slate ● Jul. 28, 2026
Think you’re smarter about finances than the average U.S. adult?
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
"Such devices could be used in smarter infrared sensors, more efficient energy systems, and new types of photonic memory that store information using light and heat instead of electrical charges."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
“Our customers really use us as an alternative…to be smarter in what they’re doing based on the economic conditions out there,” said Jerry Jory, a division vice president at Ezcorp.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Don’t sass me, child. You think you’re smarter than me? You know I intended for you to wash those dishes. And you made your sister do your work.”
From "Betty Before X" by Ilyasah Shabazz and Renée Watson
"Just because we have the smartest people developing AI does not mean we have the ability to do so safely."
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
"If you're the smartest person in the room, you need to leave and find another room where you'll feel like an amateur," she added.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
If I do decide to make a change, what’s the smartest way to approach a career shift like this?
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
Many of the smartest people in the world warned governments, companies and people Monday that they need to be ready for the deep impact that artificial intelligence is going to have on the economy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
“You two are about the smartest kids I ever met,” she said.
From "Ruby Holler" by Sharon Creech
The next big test will be when Siri gets new smarts later this year, due in part to a collaboration with Google that Apple announced in January.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 22, 2026
While Borthwick has generally been wedded to speed and breakdown smarts in his back row, there is the option of adding some bosh.
From BBC ● Mar. 9, 2026
Street smarts may hold the upper hand for now.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 28, 2026
If the player payroll is just about the same for every team, then success would depend in large part on the smarts of ownership and management.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
He used his mind, his heart, his incredible street smarts, and his fortune to save our lives.
From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson
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
It smarted as well that Prince Mohammed seemed to get no credit for the kingdom’s social changes, nor for his own efforts to avert regional conflict, including starting talks with the Iranians in Baghdad.
From New York Times ● Jul. 14, 2022
The result smarted: a 2-0 defeat before an announced 16,073.
From Washington Post ● May 18, 2022
He still smarted, more from Ellidyr’s words than from the drubbing; and he was hardly pleased that Eilonwy had seen him sprawled at the feet of the arrogant Prince.
From "The Black Cauldron" by Lloyd Alexander
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
Earlier, Pep Guardiola's City went into their match against bottom side smarting after an embarrassing 3-1 Champions League defeat at Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt.
From Barron's ● Jan. 24, 2026
Derek Weeks started his search about six months ago, still smarting from last Christmas when he couldn’t secure a reindeer to go with his Santa.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025
Fingers smarting, the shamefaced Taran hurried from the cottage and found Coll near the vegetable garden.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
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.
