snide

[ snahyd ]

/ snaɪd /

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adjective, snid·er, snid·est.

derogatory in a nasty, insinuating manner: snide remarks about his boss.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of snide

First recorded in 1860–65; origin uncertain

OTHER WORDS FROM snide

snidely, adverbsnideness, noun

Words nearby snide

snick, snicker, snickersnee, snicket, Snickometer, snide, sniff, sniff at, sniffer, sniffer dog, sniffish

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use snide in a sentence

Raiders Coach Jon Gruden didn’t particularly want to discuss the topic, suggesting the maneuver might have been aimed at “a smart-aleck bus driver in Kansas City who made some snide comments when we got on the bus” and calling the issue “ridiculous.”
No victory lap this time for Raiders as Patrick Mahomes wins it late for Chiefs|Mark Maske|November 23, 2020|Washington Post
They can also be a bit snide, as distinct from being funny, about which talent more later.
Geoff Dyer at Sea: Unmoored but on Target|Melissa Holbrook Pierson|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the following issue, The Group was the subject of a snide, imperious review by Norman Mailer.
American Dreams, 1963: ‘The Group’ by Mary McCarthy|Nathaniel Rich|July 25, 2013|DAILY BEAST
She welcomed Jews into her cabinet, prompting the snide joke that she favored "Old Estonians over Old Etonians."
How Margaret Thatcher Saved Britain and Changed the World|David Frum|April 8, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Again, I am not being snide but am actually looking for an answer.
Why the Absolutist Rage, Islamists?|Justin Green|September 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
For all the snide comments from the right, the word is getting passed on.
Republicans Laugh, But Women Relate to 'The Life of Julia'|Judith Grey|May 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
I guess I ain't told you much you don't know about your snide business.
The Clarion|Samuel Hopkins Adams
You played a snide trick on me, anyway—lost your looks the second month and went dead like a punctured tire!
Just Around the Corner|Fannie Hurst
If I carn't keep upsides with the cackle of snide 'uns, dear Charlie, who can?
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 93, December 17, 1887|Various
I am going away because I haven't any money, and I'm not going to be a snide and stay on here as your guest.
The Ranch Girls' Pot of Gold|Margaret Vandercook
There are snide detectives just as there are shyster lawyers, quack doctors and dead-beat newspaper men.
Hands Up; or Thirty-Five Years of Detective Life in the Mountains and on the Plains|D. J. Cook

British Dictionary definitions for snide (1 of 2)

snide¹

/ (snaɪd) /

adjective

Also: snidey (ˈsnaɪdɪ) (of a remark, etc) maliciously derogatory; supercilious

counterfeit; sham

noun

slang sham jewellery

Derived forms of snide

snidely, adverbsnideness, noun

Word Origin for snide

C19: of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for snide (2 of 2)

snide²

/ (snaɪd) /

verb (tr; usually passive and foll by with)

Northern English dialect to fill or load

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