smooth
Americanadjective
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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.
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free from hairs or a hairy growth.
a smooth cheek.
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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.
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allowing or having an even, uninterrupted movement or flow.
smooth driving.
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easy and uniform, as motion or the working of a machine.
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having projections worn away.
a smooth tire casing.
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free from hindrances or difficulties.
a smooth day at the office.
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noting a metal file having the minimum commercial grade of coarseness for a single-cut file.
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undisturbed, tranquil, or equable, as the feelings, temper, etc.; serene.
a smooth disposition.
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elegant, easy, or polished.
smooth manners.
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ingratiatingly polite or suave.
That salesman is a smooth talker.
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free from harshness, sharpness, or bite; bland or mellow, as cheese or wine.
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not harsh to the ear, as sound.
the smooth music of a ballroom dance band.
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Phonetics. without aspiration.
adverb
verb (used with object)
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to make smooth of surface, as by scraping, planing, or pressing.
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to remove (projections, ridges, wrinkles, etc.) in making something smooth (often followed by away orout ).
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to free from difficulties.
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to remove (obstacles) from a path (often followed byaway ).
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to make more polished, elegant, or agreeable, as wording or manners.
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to tranquilize, calm, or soothe (a person, the feelings, etc.).
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Mathematics. to simplify (an expression) by substituting approximate or certain known values for the variables.
noun
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act of smoothing.
She adjusted the folds with a smooth of her hand.
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something that is smooth; a smooth part or place.
through the rough and the smooth.
verb phrase
adjective
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resting in the same plane; without bends or irregularities
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silky to the touch
smooth velvet
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lacking roughness of surface; flat
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tranquil or unruffled
smooth temper
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lacking obstructions or difficulties
-
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suave or persuasive, esp as suggestive of insincerity
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( in combination )
smooth-tongued
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(of the skin) free from hair
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of uniform consistency
smooth batter
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not erratic; free from jolts
smooth driving
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not harsh or astringent
a smooth wine
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having all projections worn away
smooth tyres
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maths (of a curve) differentiable at every point
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phonetics without preliminary or simultaneous aspiration
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gentle to the ear; flowing
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physics (of a plane, surface, etc) regarded as being frictionless
adverb
verb
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to make or become flattened or without roughness or obstructions
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to take or rub (away) in order to make smooth
she smoothed out the creases in her dress
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to make calm; soothe
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to make easier
smooth his path
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electrical engineering to remove alternating current ripple from the output of a direct current power supply
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obsolete to make more polished or refined
noun
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the smooth part of something
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the act of smoothing
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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
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smoothnessnoun
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unsmoothnessnoun
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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
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smoothlyadverb
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unsmoothlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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smoothsimple
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smoothssimple
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have smoothedperfect
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has smoothedperfect
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am smoothingprogressive
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are smoothingprogressive
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is smoothingprogressive
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have been smoothingperfect progressive
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has been smoothingperfect progressive
Past
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smoothedsimple
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had smoothedperfect
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was smoothingprogressive
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were smoothingprogressive
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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:
The show grew so popular that it spawned a whole genre of smooth and sexy music, exemplified by artists like Anita Baker and Luther Vandross.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
Under Simon’s direction, the presentation is smooth and professional, though the ensemble reflects different levels of experience.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Those simulations show that the churning material near the surface can escape unevenly rather than flowing away in a smooth, balanced pattern.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
The technique here is simple: Roast the berries until their juices thicken, chill them completely, then blend with yogurt and buttermilk until smooth.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Ripples spread in silent, ever-increasing circles across the smooth surface of what they all had mistaken for solid ground.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
Student Xu Leran, 26, said that inviting a man into one's home can raise "safety concerns", but with a woman technician "I would definitely feel much more at ease, and communication would be smoother too".
From Barron's ● Jul. 8, 2026
EES is meant to modernise the EU's system of border control, making it more secure and eventually making travel smoother.
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
The enriched whey protein delivered improved texture characteristics and reduced the amount of friction experienced in the mouth, creating a smoother drinking experience.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 15, 2026
It has been a big player in PCs for decades through its graphics chips, which produce sharper and smoother images on computer monitors—a capability videogamers prize.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
If I think about something before I tell it here, well, it comes out smoother.
From "The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle" by Leslie Connor
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
The smoothest option is to hold the item in the opposite hand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025
But it hasn’t always been the smoothest ride.
From Barron's ● Nov. 21, 2025
“Not the smoothest of rides to get here,” first baseman Freddie Feeman added.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2025
He sat down beside me, and said in his smoothest voice as he opened two letters:—
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
This layer smooths the input data before calculating changes, avoiding the instability caused by traditional methods.
From Science Daily ● May 6, 2026
The language smooths out, the argument grows more confident, and the hesitation fades.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
Whatever the case, the monthly average of new claims smooths out the weekly ups and downs and gives a better sense of labor-market conditions.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 12, 2026
It smooths out the noise and highlights the true character of the stock.
From Barron's ● Dec. 4, 2025
She smooths her trousers with both hands and continues walking purposefully, to where she doesn’t know.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
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
But they smoothed over the tensions during Petro's visit to the White House in February.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
“Over time, he stuck closer to his briefing book. The sharp edges were smoothed, reducing points of conflict as well as the information content,”
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 25, 2026
He reached down and pulled it from inside his shoe and smoothed it out in his hand.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
She says processing her feelings first and then smoothing out the language teed her up for a more productive dialogue with the recipient.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
During the album’s rollout, the pop star’s visage was perfected with the help of some uncanny AI smoothing, while her accompanying “Confessions II” short film featured a team of AI artists in the credits.
From Salon ● Jul. 8, 2026
It can work for some people who prefer the “pull off the Band-Aid approach,” but for most, smoothing out the tax consequences works best.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
The visit was officially meant to celebrate transatlantic ties as the United States marks its 250th anniversary of independence from Britain, but much of Charles's time has been spent smoothing over tensions over Iran.
From Barron's ● Apr. 30, 2026
You stand, smoothing out the blanket with the toe of your shoe.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
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.
