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.
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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.
-
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.
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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.
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Phonetics. without aspiration.
adverb
verb (used with object)
-
smooths,
present (3rd person singular)
-
smoothed,
past participle, past
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smoothing
present participle
-
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.).
-
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.
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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
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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
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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
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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
-
smoothlyadverb
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unsmoothlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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smoothsimple
-
smoothssimple
-
have smoothedperfect
-
has smoothedperfect
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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:
But by making strides in integrating agency, belonging and cause into your life, you pave the way for a smooth transition.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
As wide of a lead as the Dodgers have in the division race, their season hasn’t been smooth sailing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
Instead of the smooth, narrow tubes commonly drawn extending from nerve cells, some axons resemble strings of tiny pearls.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
In the occupied West Bank's arid region of Masafer Yatta, Emar made a smooth concrete floor on two caves' rough limestone ground before applying a white limewash on the brittle stone walls.
From Barron's ● Sep. 17, 2026
I brushed my fingers over the threads, smooth and warm.
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
International licensing agreements make the process of marketing and distributing drugs easier and can help Chinese firms conduct clinical trials outside of China, which typically leads to smoother FDA approval.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 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
Males usually have a more noticeable point along the front edge of the head, while females tend to have a smoother and more rounded outline.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
By the time I got to Mrs. Rouse’s room, I’d rolled that word around so much, I thought I might just have rolled its sharp edges a tiny bit smoother.
From Absolutely Almost by Lisa Graff
Even at the Carpenters’ smoothest, I hear deep sadness in Karen’s singing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026
Blue Owl’s future will depend on whether Ostrover and Lipschultz, two of Wall Street’s smoothest salesmen, can assuage concerns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
Your Party has not got off to the smoothest of starts.
From BBC ● Nov. 30, 2025
But it hasn’t always been the smoothest ride.
From Barron's ● Nov. 21, 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
Helmuth pulls up his stool to the scratchy table, spreads out the first sheet of paper, smooths it with his hands.
From "The Boy Who Dared" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
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
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
Few automobile exteriors are ever finished like this, with its broad, sterling-like chrome garnishes at the lower grille intakes, the rocker panels, exhaust outlets and bumpers, all smoothed perfectly into the blown-glass curvatures.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Earlier methods often smoothed these features into broad averages.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 22, 2026
I smoothed down my nightshirt and wiggled my toes within my thick wool socks.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
“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
Her palm ran over her straightened hair curled at her shoulders, smoothing down any fly a ways.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
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.
