smartly

American  

[smahrt-lee] / ˈsmɑrt li /

adverb

1. in a neat, trim way.

   At this boarding school, students must be smartly dressed and properly prepared for each class.

2. in an elegant, sophisticated, or fashionable way.

   The contemporary white cabinets are smartly accented by modern terracotta tile.

3. in a way that shows quick intelligence or good practical judgment.

   Smartly used, the tools I've highlighted will make you a better and more effective manager.

4. shrewdly or sharply, as in business; strategically.

   Plan smartly, act coolly, and then retaliate when it best suits you.

5. in a clever or witty way.

   The narrator in this song smartly observes that "the only thing that stays the same is everything changes."

6. quickly or promptly.

   When the drill sergeant gives them an order, the recruits obey smartly.

7. briskly or vigorously.

   The detective took the warrant from the officer and walked smartly into the inner office without knocking.

8. in a pert or saucy way.

   Asked if the two of them could stop bickering like children and listen up, she retorted smartly, "I can if he can."

9. in a sharp, precise, or severe way and with a cracking sound, as of striking or slapping.

   Under water, two rocks struck smartly together can be heard over a great distance.

   Mark out the shape of the hole by placing the metal plate in position and tapping it smartly with a hammer.

10. Digital Technology. in a remote, automated, self-regulating, or seemingly intelligent way that makes use of electronic control mechanisms and programming, microprocessors, internet access, etc..

    When our all-wheel drive system senses excessive slip, it smartly sends power to the wheel with the surest footing.

11. sharply or keenly, as pain.

    I refused to limp, though my shin hurt smartly from the blow.

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Other Word Forms

• supersmartly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of smartly

First recorded in 1220–30; 2005–10 smartly for def. 10; smart ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Example Sentences

Kostyuk, who won the Rouen and Madrid titles coming in, played confidently and smartly to continue to ask questions of Swiatek from the baseline.

From BBC • May 31, 2026

I’m on a mission to shop on a budget, systematically, smartly and intentionally.

From Salon • May 30, 2026

Bucket-listers envision a lifetime wrapped up as smartly as a dossier before the parting bell tolls, with each page filled in, every desire fulfilled.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

Judge Gonzalez Rogers will decide by late May -- guided by the advisory jury's findings -- whether OpenAI broke a promise to Musk, or just smartly rode the technology to glory.

From Barron's • Apr. 28, 2026

It was September when they sailed smartly into Boston Harbor, every man an old salt, the Astrea stripped of her chafing gear and gleaming with fresh paint and varnish.

From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham

Related Words

• stylishly
• vigorously