smith

[smith]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR smith ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a worker in metal.

a blacksmith.

verb (used with object)

to forge on an anvil; form by heating and pounding: to smith armor.

Origin of smith

before 900; (noun) Middle English, Old English; cognate with German Schmied, Old Norse smithr, Gothic -smitha; (v.) Middle English smithen, Old English smithian; cognate with Old Norse smitha, Gothic gasmithōn

Smith

[smith]

noun

Adam,1723–90, Scottish economist.

Alfred E(manuel),1873–1944, U.S. political leader.

Bessie,1894?–1937, U.S. singer.

Charles HenryBill Arp, 1826–1903, U.S. humorist.

David,1906–65, U.S. sculptor.

Edmond Kir·by

[kur-bee] /ˈkɜr bi/, 1824–93, Confederate general in the Civil War.

Francis Hopkinson,1838–1915, U.S. novelist, painter, and engineer.

George,1840–76, English archaeologist and Assyriologist.

Hamilton Othanel,born 1931, U.S. microbiologist, codiscoverer of restriction enzymes: Nobel prize 1978.

Hannah Whit·all [hwit-awl, wit‐] /ˈʰwɪt ɔl, ˈwɪt‐/, 1832–1911, U.S. writer and evangelist.

Ian Douglas,1919–2007, Rhodesian political leader: prime minister 1964–79.

Jed·e·di·ah Strong [jed-uh-dahy-uh strawng, strong] /ˌdʒɛd əˈdaɪ ə ˈstrɔŋ, ˈstrɒŋ/, 1799–1831, U.S. trapper and explorer, one of the mountain men in the early American West.

John,1580–1631, English adventurer and colonist in Virginia.

Joseph,1805–44, U.S. religious leader: founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Julia Ev·e·li·na [ev-uh-lahy-nuh] /ˌɛv əˈlaɪ nə/, 1792–1886, U.S. suffragist.

Kathryn ElizabethKate, 1909–86, U.S. singer.

Lo·gan Pear·sall

[loh-guh n peer-sawl] /ˈloʊ gən ˈpɪər sɔl/, 1865–1946, U.S. essayist in England.

Margaret Chase,1897–1995, U.S. politician.

Michael,1932–2000, Canadian biochemist, born in England: Nobelprize 1993.

Oliver,1918–1994, U.S. set designer and theatrical producer.

RedWalter Wellesley Smith, 1905–82, U.S. sports journalist.

Sydney,1771–1845, English clergyman, writer, and wit.

Tony,1912–80, U.S. sculptor.

William,1769–1839, English geologist.

a male given name.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for smith

artisan, specialist, journeyman, master, mechanic, maker, manufacturer, wright, technician, machinist, blacksmith, artificer

Examples from the Web for smith

Contemporary Examples of smith

Smith attended both funerals as a cop and as the husband of Police Officer Moira Smith, who died on 9/11.
The Muslim Cop Killed by Terrorists
Michael Daly
January 9, 2015
“Angry Birds is a small fun game plus a lot of pointless garbage,” Smith tells me.
Lost For Thousands of Strokes: 'Desert Golfing' Is 'Angry Birds' as Modern Art
Alec Kubas-Meyer
January 2, 2015
Neither Smith nor Marx can carry us far into the guts of globalized financial capitalism.
American Democracy Under Threat for 250 Years
Jedediah Purdy
December 28, 2014
Some of these cereals, Smith pointed out, were 60-percent sugar.
Cereal Cafe’s Big Bowl of Hate
David Levesley
December 14, 2014
Superintendent Smith, in fact, had fielded a steady stream of complaints about him that never resulted in any direct action.
Stonewall Jackson, VMI’s Most Embattled Professor
S. C. Gwynne
November 29, 2014

Historical Examples of smith

"You are very kind, Captain Smith," said Robert, gratefully.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
Captain Smith he found to be a very different man from Captain Haley.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
From that time, therefore, Captain Rushton was known as Mr. Smith.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
Haley drew near, and heard Captain Rushton addressed as Mr. Smith.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
I no longer doubted the statement of Thompson and the speculator Smith.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. 327
Various

British Dictionary definitions for smith

smith

noun

a person who works in metal, esp one who shapes metal by hammering
(in combination)a silversmith

See blacksmith

Word Origin for smith

Old English; related to Old Norse smithr, Old High German smid, Middle Low German smīde jewellery, Greek smilē carving knife

Smith

noun

Adam. 1723–90, Scottish economist and philosopher, whose influential book The Wealth of Nations (1776) advocated free trade and private enterprise and opposed state interference

Alexander McCall. born 1948, Scottish writer and academic, born in Zimbabwe. His novels include The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (1998), The Sunday Philosophy Club (2004) and 44 Scotland Street (2005)

Bessie, known as Empress of the Blues. 1894–1937, US blues singer and songwriter

Delia. born 1941, British cookery writer and broadcaster: her publications include The Complete Cookery Course (1982)

F.E. See (1st Earl of) Birkenhead

Harvey. born 1938, British showjumper

Ian (Douglas). 1919–2007, Zimbabwean statesman; prime minister of Rhodesia (1964–79). He declared independence from Britain unilaterally (1965)

John. ?1580–1631, English explorer and writer, who helped found the North American colony of Jamestown, Virginia. He was reputedly saved by the Indian chief's daughter Pocahontas from execution by her tribe. Among his works is a Description of New England (1616)

John. 1938–94, British Labour politician; leader of the Labour Party 1992–94

Joseph. 1805–44, US religious leader; founder of the Mormon Church

Dame Maggie. born 1934, British actress. She has appeared in the films The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969), California Suite (1978), The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1988), The Secret Garden (1993), Gosford Park (2001), the Harry Potter series (2001–11), and in the TV series Downton Abbey (from 2010)

Stevie, real name Florence Margaret Smith. 1902–71, British poet. Her works include Novel on Yellow Paper (1936), and the poems `A Good Time was had by All' (1937) and `Not Waving but Drowning' (1957)

Sydney. 1771–1845, British clergyman and writer, noted for The Letters of Peter Plymley (1807–08), in which he advocated Catholic emancipation

Will (ard Christopher). born 1968, US film actor and rap singer; star of the television series The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (1990–96) and the films Men In Black (1997), Ali (2001), and I Robot (2004)

Wilbur. born 1933, British novelist, born in Zambia. His novels include Where the Lion Feeds (1964), Monsoon (1999) and The Quest (2007)

William. 1769–1839, English geologist, who founded the science of stratigraphy by proving that rock strata could be dated by the fossils they contained

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

Word Origin and History for smith

Old English smið "blacksmith, armorer, one who works in metal" (jewelers as well as blacksmiths), more broadly, "handicraftsman, practitioner of skilled manual arts" (also including carpenters), from Proto-Germanic *smithaz "skilled worker" (cf. Old Saxon smith, Old Norse smiðr, Danish smed, Old Frisian smith, Old High German smid, German Schmied, Gothic -smiþa, in aiza-smiþa "coppersmith"), from PIE root *smi- "to cut, work with a sharp instrument" (cf. Greek smile "knife, chisel"). Attested as a surname since at least c.975.

Old English smiðian "to forge, fabricate, design," from the source of smith (n.). Related: Smithed; smithing.

smith in Medicine

Smith

[smĭth]Hamilton Othanel Born 1931

American microbiologist. He shared a 1978 Nobel Prize for the discovery of restriction enzymes and their application to molecular genetics.

smith in Science

Smith

[smĭth]Hamilton Othanel Born 1931

American microbiologist who isolated bacterial enzymes that could split genetic DNA into fragments large enough to retain genetic information but small enough to permit chemical analysis. The existence of these compounds (called restriction enzymes) was earlier predicted by Werner Arber, and their discovery revolutionized genetic engineering. For this work Smith shared the 1978 Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine with Arber and Daniel Nathans.

Smith,

Michael 1932-2000

British-born Canadian biochemist who developed a method for making a specific genetic mutation at any spot on a DNA molecule. He shared with American biochemist Kary B. Mullis the 1993 Nobel Prize for chemistry.