smarts
smarts — noun
1. the ability to think, learn quickly, and make good judgments in everyday situati
the ability to think, learn quickly, and make good judgments in everyday situations; practical cleverness rather than formal education
Farida has the smarts to solve problems that stump the rest of the team.
have the smarts to + verb
You need street smarts to stay safe when walking home at night alone.
collocation: street smarts
Kwame's business smarts turned a tiny market stall into a chain of shops.
collocation: business smarts
Lin grew her smarts by helping in her uncle's repair shop every Saturday after school.
Priya showed real smarts when she read the room and changed her presentation halfway through.
- street smarts
- business smarts
- have the smarts to
- it takes smarts to
- intelligence
more formal; covers both academic and practical ability
- cleverness
emphasises quick thinking and creative solutions
- shrewdness
suggests sharp judgment about people and situations, often in business
Usage Note
Almost always plural ('smarts'). Often used in compounds like 'street smarts' or 'business smarts' to name a specific kind of practical know-how. Distinguish from adjective sense 1: the noun describes applied cleverness, not raw mental ability.
Common Mistakes
2. a sharp, sudden feeling of pain on the skin, like the sting from a cut, burn, or
a sharp, sudden feeling of pain on the skin, like the sting from a cut, burn, or hard slap
Dimitri felt the smart of the antiseptic as the nurse cleaned the cut on his knee.
the smart of + [cause of pain]
The smart of the cold wind on her cheeks made Sana pull her scarf tighter.
Tendai winced at the smart of lemon juice hitting the paper cut on his thumb.
A bee sting leaves a sharp smart that fades into a dull ache after an hour.
- the smart of
Usage Note
Used in the singular with 'the': 'the smart of something'. This sense is rarer in everyday speech; the verb form (verb sense 1) is more common for describing the same sensation.
smarts — adjective
1. quick to learn, understand, and figure things out; having a sharp and capable mi
quick to learn, understand, and figure things out; having a sharp and capable mind
Yara is the smart kid in class who always has her hand up with the answer.
Ravi's smart question about the contract clause saved his team from a costly mistake a week later.
smart + noun: smart question, smart decision
The new receptionist impressed everyone — she was smart, warm, and picked things up fast.
Oluwaseun's dog is so smart it can open the back door by itself when it wants to go out.
It was a smart decision to bring an umbrella; the sky opened up ten minutes later.
- smart choice
- smart decision
- smart kid
- smart move
- intelligent
more formal; often used for academic or analytical ability
- bright
similar to 'smart' but slightly more informal and warm in tone
- clever
emphasises quick, inventive thinking more than deep knowledge
Usage Note
This is the most common sense. When describing a person, 'smart' can refer to natural intelligence or good judgment. When describing a thing (decision, move, idea), it means sensible and well thought out. Distinguish from noun sense 1: the adjective describes a quality; the noun describes the ability itself.
Common Mistakes
2. good at making quick, funny, and clever remarks; sharp with words in an entertai
good at making quick, funny, and clever remarks; sharp with words in an entertaining way
Hassan's smart comebacks always get a laugh, even when he is not trying to be funny.
smart + comeback / remark / retort
The smart dialogue in the courtroom scene had the whole cinema laughing out loud.
Ingrid gave a smart reply to the rude customer that left everyone else in the shop smiling.
João is too smart for his own good sometimes — his jokes sail right over people's heads.
smart + for one's own good
- smart remark
- smart comeback
- smart dialogue
- smart reply
- witty
the closest synonym; emphasises verbal cleverness and humour
- quick-witted
highlights speed of response rather than the humour itself
- dull
boring or slow in conversation
Usage Note
Usually describes speech or writing (a smart remark, smart dialogue), not a permanent personality trait. Someone can make a smart comment without being 'smart' in sense 1. Distinguish from sense 3: witty remarks entertain; impudent remarks challenge authority.
Common Mistakes
3. talking or behaving in a bold and disrespectful manner, especially towards a par
talking or behaving in a bold and disrespectful manner, especially towards a parent, teacher, or boss — as if trying to show you are cleverer than them
When Tomas told his grandmother to mind her own business, she called him a smart boy.
smart + person (negative: disrespectful)
Don't get smart with the police officer — just answer the question politely and move on.
get smart with + [person]
Mei-Lin sent her father a smart text that she regretted the moment she pressed send.
The waiter gave the manager a smart look and walked off, leaving the table uncleared.
smart + look / attitude / tone
- get smart with
- smart mouth
- smart aleck
- don't be smart
- respectful
shows proper regard for someone's position or age
Usage Note
Usually negative and disapproving. Common in the phrases 'don't get smart with me' and 'smart mouth'. Distinguish from sense 2: a witty remark is meant to entertain; an impudent remark challenges or disrespects someone.
Common Mistakes
4. looking clean, neat, and well put together; dressed or designed in an attractive
looking clean, neat, and well put together; dressed or designed in an attractive and tidy way
Naledi wore a smart navy suit to the interview, and she got the job the same week.
smart + [clothing item]: suit, dress, jacket
The restaurant had a smart look inside, with soft lighting and white tablecloths on every table.
The hotel's new lobby is so smart that guests take photos of it for their travel blog posts.
You look very smart in that jacket — is it new, or have you just never worn it before?
look smart / very smart in + [clothing]
The café on the corner has had a smart makeover and now draws a crowd every weekend morning.
smart + makeover / renovation / upgrade
- smart suit
- smart dress
- smart appearance
- look smart
- smart casual
- scruffy
untidy and poorly dressed
Usage Note
Common in British English. In American English, 'sharp' or 'sharp-looking' is more common for this meaning. Often used for clothes, appearance, and interior design. Distinguish from sense 1: 'a smart person' means intelligent; 'a smart suit' means stylish.
Common Mistakes
5. fitted with a tiny computer or electronic control system that lets the device op
fitted with a tiny computer or electronic control system that lets the device operate, adjust, or communicate on its own
Nia bought a smart thermostat that learns her routine and lowers the heat when she leaves.
smart + device: thermostat, phone, watch, speaker
Mia's smart lights dim automatically when she starts a film on her tablet.
smart + device: lights, thermostat, speaker
Their new office building uses smart glass that darkens automatically when the sun gets too bright.
smart + material: glass, fabric, coating
The smart fridge sent Chidi a message on his phone telling him the milk was about to go sour.
City planners are testing smart traffic lights that change timing based on how many cars are waiting.
- smart device
- smart technology
- smart home
- smart card
- computerised
emphasises the presence of a computer chip
- automated
focuses on the device working without human input
- intelligent
used similarly for technology but less common; 'intelligent oven' vs 'smart oven'
Usage Note
This sense is almost always attributive (before a noun): 'a smart device', not 'the device is smart'. In modern use, 'smart' in this sense most often appears in product names: smartphone, smart TV, smart home.
Common Mistakes
6. done with speed and energy; quick, lively, or forceful in movement or action
done with speed and energy; quick, lively, or forceful in movement or action
The hikers set off at a smart pace and reached the hilltop in under half an hour.
at a smart pace
A smart breeze blew in from the sea, flapping the café umbrellas and scattering napkins across the sand.
smart + breeze / wind / gust
The old carpenter gave the stuck drawer a smart tap with his hammer, and it finally slid open.
smart + tap / blow / rap
The porter set off at a smart walk toward platform nine, the luggage cart rattling behind him.
at a smart walk / pace
- at a smart pace
- smart breeze
- smart tap
- smart start
- sluggish
slow and lacking in energy
Usage Note
Attributive only (before a noun). Common with nouns of movement (pace, walk, trot), wind (breeze, gust), and force (blow, tap). This sense is somewhat literary; in everyday speech, 'brisk' or 'quick' is more common.
7. causing a quick, sharp, stinging feeling on the skin; harsh and painful in effec
causing a quick, sharp, stinging feeling on the skin; harsh and painful in effect
A smart slap across the face left Amina's cheek red and burning for a full ten minutes afterwards.
smart + slap / blow / smack
The smart sting of iodine on the graze made Kofi squeeze his eyes shut and hiss through his teeth.
Rubbing alcohol on the fresh tattoo gave it a smart burn that passed after a few seconds.
smart + burn / sting / pain
A smart crack from the whip made the horses pick up speed, though it never actually touched them.
smart + crack / snap / lash
- smart slap
- smart blow
- smart sting
- smart pain
Usage Note
Attributive only. Always describes a physical sensation — a strike, sting, or burn. This sense is distinct from sense 6 (brisk) which describes speed and energy. Compare with verb sense 1: 'the cut smarts' (verb) vs 'a smart pain' (adjective).
smarts — verb
1. to feel or produce a sharp, burning hurt on the surface of the skin — the kind y
to feel or produce a sharp, burning hurt on the surface of the skin — the kind you get from a fresh cut, a hard slap, or cold wind on exposed skin
The paper cut on Zola's finger smarted every time she dipped her hands into the dishwater.
[body part] + smarted
His eyes smarted from the smoke pouring out of the kitchen after the toast caught fire.
[body part] + smarted from + [cause]
The cold rain smarted against Emeka's bare arms as he ran from the car to the front door.
[cause] + smarted against + [body part]
Antiseptic wipes clean the wound well, but they smart like crazy when they first touch raw skin.
Hana's cheeks smarted for an hour after she came in from the bitter January wind on the walk home.
- eyes smarted
- smart from
- smart with pain
Grammar Patterns
[body part] + smart
[cause] + smart + [person]
Usage Note
Nearly always intransitive: the body part does the smarting ('my eyes smarted'). The transitive use is rare and literary ('the blow smarted him'). Often followed by 'from' + cause. Describes surface-level, short-lived pain — not deep or long-lasting ache.
Common Mistakes
2. to feel a deep, lingering hurt in your heart or pride — not a quick sting but a
to feel a deep, lingering hurt in your heart or pride — not a quick sting but a wound that stays with you after an insult, a loss, or an unfair attack
Pavel smarted from the criticism for weeks; he had poured months of work into that design proposal.
smart from + [emotional cause]
Ten years later, the singer still smarted over the review that called his first record unlistenable rubbish.
smart over + [insult / criticism]
Lian smarted under her brother-in-law's constant snide remarks at every single family dinner she attended.
smart under + [treatment / attack]
The team smarted at being left out of the final round after winning every match in the group stage before it.
smart at + [unfair outcome]
- smart from
- smart under
- smart over
- smart at
Grammar Patterns
smart from + [insult/criticism/loss]
smart under + [treatment/attack]
Usage Note
Always intransitive. The pain is emotional — wounded pride, embarrassment, or resentment — not physical. Usually followed by a preposition: 'smart from' (the cause), 'smart under' (ongoing treatment), 'smart over' (a specific event). Often used in literary or formal writing; rare in casual speech.
Common Mistakes
3. to pay a heavy price or face painful consequences for something foolish or wrong
to pay a heavy price or face painful consequences for something foolish or wrong you did earlier
The café owner smarted for months after the bad review went viral and bookings dried up overnight.
smart for + [duration]
Rafael cheated on the exam and smarted for it when the university expelled him a month before finals.
smart for + [action / pronoun]
Councillor Hayes smarted at the local election count when she saw her name at the bottom of the results sheet.
smart at + [event of consequence]
Leo smarted for skipping his final exam when the university rescinded his scholarship two days later.
- smart for
- smart badly
Grammar Patterns
smart for + [mistake / action]
Usage Note
Always intransitive, nearly always followed by 'for' + the mistake or its consequence. The subject is usually a person, company, or group who suffers. This sense appears most often in journalism and narrative prose. In everyday speech, 'pay for' or 'suffer for' is more natural.
Common Mistakes
smarts — adverb
1. in a neat, stylish, or brisk manner — covering the adverbial form of the main ad
in a neat, stylish, or brisk manner — covering the adverbial form of the main adjective meanings
The soldiers stood smart to attention the moment the general walked into the parade ground.
stand smart / stand smartly
Kaito dressed smart for the wedding, in a three-piece suit that his grandmother had made for him by hand.
dress smart / dress smartly
The old clock on the mantelpiece still ticks along as smart as the day it was made, a hundred and twenty years ago.
as smart as
- dress smart
- stand smart
- smartly
the standard adverb form; always safe to use instead of adverbial 'smart'
Usage Note
Rare. In nearly all contexts, 'smartly' is preferred: 'dress smartly', 'stand smartly'. 'Smart' as an adverb survives mostly in fixed expressions like 'stand smart' (military) or in regional and dialectal use. Learners should default to 'smartly'.
Common Mistakes
Word family
- smartlyadverbB2
- smartnessnounC1
- smartingadjectiveC1
- smartenverbC1
- smart alecknounC1
- smartphonenounA2
- smartwatchnounB1
Synonym discussion
Sense: adjective/1
These four words all describe someone with strong mental ability, but they differ in tone and in what kind of smartness they highlight. 'Smart' (A2) is the broadest and most common in everyday speech — a smart person learns fast and makes good calls. 'Intelligent' (B1) is more formal and often suggests deeper analytical power; you would say a chess champion is intelligent, but your friend who always finds the best shortcut is smart. 'Bright' (B2) adds warmth — a bright kid in class is not just quick but engaged and lively. 'Clever' (B1) tilts toward inventiveness: a clever solution is creative and unexpected, sometimes even a little tricky. 'Sharp' (B2) stresses speed and perceptiveness — a sharp lawyer spots the weak point in an argument within seconds. In a job reference, 'highly intelligent' sounds weightier than 'really smart'; telling a child they are 'bright' sounds more encouraging than 'intelligent', which can feel cold.
Common collocations
Adverbs
- pretty smart
- really smart
- incredibly smart
- smart enough
Phrases
- play it smart
- the smart money is on
- work smarter, not harder
Prepositions
- smart of [someone]
- smart about
Etymology
'Smart' comes from the Old English 'smeortan', meaning 'to be painful, to sting', which traces back to a Proto-Germanic root related to biting or sharp pain. The physical-pain meaning is the oldest — the verb sense of stinging goes back over a thousand years. By the 1300s, the word had stretched to describe emotional pain ('smarting from an insult'), and by the 1400s it began appearing as an adjective for sharp, brisk actions (a 'smart blow'). The meaning 'clever, intelligent' is much later: it first appeared around the 1600s, possibly from the idea of a 'sharp' mind — the same metaphor that gives us 'keen' and 'sharp' for intelligence. The 'stylish' sense emerged in the 1700s, evolving from the idea of being quick and trim in appearance. The technology sense ('smartphone', 'smart device') is the newest, taking off in the 1980s and 1990s as computer chips began appearing in everyday objects.