smug

[ smuhg ]
See synonyms for: smugsmugness on Thesaurus.com

adjective,smug·ger, smug·gest.
  1. contentedly confident of one's ability, superiority, or correctness; complacent.

  2. trim; spruce; smooth; sleek.

Origin of smug

1
First recorded in 1545–55; perhaps from Middle Dutch smuc “neat, pretty, nice”

Other words from smug

  • smug·ly, adverb
  • smug·ness, noun
  • un·smug, adjective
  • un·smug·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use smug in a sentence

  • Smugness was easy in a world without dust or carrion smell or craters that had been factories.

    Victory | Lester del Rey
  • In this, as in other things, we have a tendency toward smugness, shortsightedness and egotism.

    How to Analyze People on Sight | Elsie Lincoln Benedict and Ralph Paine Benedict
  • But Marthasa's smugness and arrogance had not deserted him once since the beginning of this leg of the trip.

    Cubs of the Wolf | Raymond F. Jones
  • He had abandoned research in order to make Marjorie rich and to surround her with luxury and smugness.

    Personality in Literature | Rolfe Arnold Scott-James
  • Every day of further absence from England, our England, increased that delicious sub-conscious smugness.

    In the Mountains | Elizabeth von Arnim

British Dictionary definitions for smug

smug

/ (smʌɡ) /


adjectivesmugger or smuggest
  1. excessively self-satisfied or complacent

  2. archaic trim or neat

Origin of smug

1
C16: of Germanic origin; compare Low German smuck neat

Derived forms of smug

  • smugly, adverb
  • smugness, noun

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