smooth
Americanadjective
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smoother,
comparative
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smoothest
superlative
-
free from projections or unevenness of surface; not rough.
smooth wood; a smooth road.
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generally flat or unruffled, as a calm sea.
-
free from hairs or a hairy growth.
a smooth cheek.
-
of uniform consistency; free from lumps, as a batter, sauce, etc.
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free from or proceeding without abrupt curves, bends, etc..
a smooth ride.
-
allowing or having an even, uninterrupted movement or flow.
smooth driving.
-
easy and uniform, as motion or the working of a machine.
-
having projections worn away.
a smooth tire casing.
-
free from hindrances or difficulties.
a smooth day at the office.
-
noting a metal file having the minimum commercial grade of coarseness for a single-cut file.
-
undisturbed, tranquil, or equable, as the feelings, temper, etc.; serene.
a smooth disposition.
-
elegant, easy, or polished.
smooth manners.
-
ingratiatingly polite or suave.
That salesman is a smooth talker.
-
free from harshness, sharpness, or bite; bland or mellow, as cheese or wine.
-
not harsh to the ear, as sound.
the smooth music of a ballroom dance band.
-
Phonetics. without aspiration.
adverb
verb (used with object)
-
smooths,
present (3rd person singular)
-
smoothed,
past participle, past
-
smoothing
present participle
-
to make smooth of surface, as by scraping, planing, or pressing.
-
to remove (projections, ridges, wrinkles, etc.) in making something smooth (often followed by away orout ).
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to free from difficulties.
-
to remove (obstacles) from a path (often followed byaway ).
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to make more polished, elegant, or agreeable, as wording or manners.
-
to tranquilize, calm, or soothe (a person, the feelings, etc.).
-
Mathematics. to simplify (an expression) by substituting approximate or certain known values for the variables.
noun
-
act of smoothing.
She adjusted the folds with a smooth of her hand.
-
something that is smooth; a smooth part or place.
through the rough and the smooth.
verb phrase
adjective
-
resting in the same plane; without bends or irregularities
-
silky to the touch
smooth velvet
-
lacking roughness of surface; flat
-
tranquil or unruffled
smooth temper
-
lacking obstructions or difficulties
-
-
suave or persuasive, esp as suggestive of insincerity
-
( in combination )
smooth-tongued
-
-
(of the skin) free from hair
-
of uniform consistency
smooth batter
-
not erratic; free from jolts
smooth driving
-
not harsh or astringent
a smooth wine
-
having all projections worn away
smooth tyres
-
maths (of a curve) differentiable at every point
-
phonetics without preliminary or simultaneous aspiration
-
gentle to the ear; flowing
-
physics (of a plane, surface, etc) regarded as being frictionless
adverb
verb
-
to make or become flattened or without roughness or obstructions
-
to take or rub (away) in order to make smooth
she smoothed out the creases in her dress
-
to make calm; soothe
-
to make easier
smooth his path
-
electrical engineering to remove alternating current ripple from the output of a direct current power supply
-
obsolete to make more polished or refined
noun
-
the smooth part of something
-
the act of smoothing
-
tennis squash badminton the side of a racket on which the binding strings form a continuous line Compare rough
Synonym Usage
See level.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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oversmoothnessnoun
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smoothernoun
-
smoothnessnoun
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unsmoothnessnoun
-
presmoothverb (used with object)
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resmoothverb (used with object)
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oversmoothadjective
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smoothableadjective
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unsmoothadjective
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unsmoothedadjective
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oversmoothlyadverb
-
smoothlyadverb
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unsmoothlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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smoothsimple
-
smoothssimple
-
have smoothedperfect
-
has smoothedperfect
-
am smoothingprogressive
-
are smoothingprogressive
-
is smoothingprogressive
-
have been smoothingperfect progressive
-
has been smoothingperfect progressive
Past
-
smoothedsimple
-
had smoothedperfect
-
was smoothingprogressive
-
were smoothingprogressive
-
had been smoothingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of smooth
First recorded before 1050; (adjective) Middle English smothe, late Old English smōth; compare Middle English smethe, Old English smēthe “smooth”; cognate with Old Saxon smōthi; (verb) late Middle English smothen, derivative of the adjective; replacing Middle English smethen, Old English smēth(i)an
Explanation
Something smooth is free of roughness, stubble, or other imperfections that you can feel with your hands. If your wooden table is giving you splinters, use a sander to smooth it down and make it smooth. As you can see, smooth works as both a verb and an adjective. Smooth has lots of interesting uses: Caught in a wind storm? Better smooth out your hair when you head inside. Got a friend who's good with the ladies? Try imitating his smooth moves. Need help to smooth out a dispute between two friends? Invite them out for coffee and offer to help them smooth out their differences. Some pianists prefer ivory keys to plastic because they're less smooth, and their fingers don't slip. The best dancers can move smoothly from one move to another.
Vocabulary lists containing smooth
Mellow Out: Synonyms for "Calm"
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Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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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:
“I do feel like my swing is in a better place, feels smooth, and just a little tweak here and there, and I’ll be ready.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2026
Instead of a smooth rise and fall, the brightness repeatedly traced something resembling a triangle.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026
A data centre is a building that houses IT infrastructure, often servers and electronic equipment that ensure the smooth running of internet services.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
On Tuesday, Rubio sought to smooth over such difficulties, stressing that Washington wouldn’t expand its military activities in Iceland without the country’s cooperation and emphasizing U.S. respect for its sovereignty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
I look down and notice that my hem has bunched up on one side and is no longer smooth.
From "Across So Many Seas" by Ruth Behar
This pattern is consistent with a smoother progression into deeper stages of sleep.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
Garcetti’s promise of a smoother process was backed by close attention to detail and constant monitoring inside City Hall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
In a statement, DfT said journeys on the new fleet would be "quieter, smoother and more reliable", while offering "improved accessibility, more luggage space and onboard Wi-Fi".
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
As a result those who have an energy fund in their retirement account, alongside stock and bond index funds, have enjoyed the investors’ holy grail: Bigger gains, and smoother returns.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
This could’ve gone smoother if I could see.
From "The Boy in the Black Suit" by Jason Reynolds
Heidi Alexander and Apostolos Tzitzikostas agreed to "work together with aim for smoothest possible EES checks ahead of the busy summer period", the UK government said.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
But it hasn’t always been the smoothest ride.
From Barron's ● Nov. 21, 2025
Despite spending somewhere close to $650 million to assemble their rosters, the two most prestigious franchises in Major League Baseball didn’t exactly have the smoothest summers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2025
“Right now, my skin is the smoothest and clearest it’s been in forever,” she says.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2025
In his smoothest Texas voice, C. J. Peters said, “It’s a rather rare viral disease that has been responsible for human fatalities in outbreaks in Zaire and Sudan within the past ten or twelve years.”
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
These include having software that smooths out rapid acceleration, adding sound systems and subtle seat vibrations to signal to passengers that the car is moving, and offering adaptive regenerative braking that reduces sudden deceleration.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
He smooths the features of the head -- which he says weighs more than a ton -- with a yellow sponge, while another craftsman adds clay to the fingers of the enormous hands.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
The index is even further above its 200-day moving average, a technical signal that smooths out additional volatility.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
This smooths out optical distortions while avoiding extra noise that could be mistaken for real gravitational-wave signals.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 4, 2025
He takes a folded piece of paper and smooths it on the table.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
Munich's Allianz Arena is sculpted by thousands of diamond-shaped inflatable cushions, while Sydney's similarly-named Allianz Stadium has a flatter façade smoothed with long bronze fins.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
Her overseas posting and relocation were smoothed by $1.2 million in perks, covering housing-related costs, lease termination, tuition, tax prep and other benefits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
Ahead of the opening arguments, Rinderknecht smoothed back his hair and his lawyer helped adjust his tie, before giving him a pat on the back.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026
Implementing a "mollifier layer," which smoothed the signal before measuring it, radically diminished both the noisiness and the power consumption scaling.
From Science Daily ● May 6, 2026
Audrey smoothed her hands over her white shirt, then patted the back pocket of her pink shorts to check for her phone.
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
“As researchers, we think about smoothing consumption,” said Greig.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
Team boss Frederic Vasseur, who said he would talk to the drivers before discussing this in the media, has some smoothing out to do before this weekend's race in Madrid.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
These accounts collide with the present era’s eerie uncertainty at every turn, making for an altogether riveting, cyclical listening experience that tells her life’s story without smoothing its contradictions.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
In December, the Albanian government grants a "strategic investor" status to a company linked to Kushner, smoothing the project's path.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
I rose from the desk, hastily smoothing my dress.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
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.
