smart-alecky

adjective

Definition of smart-aleckynext
1
as in cute
making light of something usually regarded as serious or sacred you wouldn't be so smart-alecky if you were the one having the surgery

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sarcastic
marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings smart-alecky comments from a coworker about her new clothes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of smart-alecky Less is required of Anderson’s jaded, booze-sodden Jeff, but this smart-alecky sidekick is re-imagined with crackling comic vitality. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2026 Even at its most sorrowful, anti-authoritarian, and smart-alecky, Gunn’s work endorses a fundamentally promising vision of life. — Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025 Cleverbot veers from sounding like a winsome waif to coming across as a drunk, smart-alecky fifteen-year-old who talks in non sequiturs. — Patricia Marx, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smart-alecky
  1. cute
  2. sarcastic
  3. playful
  4. satiric
  5. acidic
Adjective
  • Instead of black tights, try cute little socks or colorful tights.
    — Anna Moeslein, Glamour, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Solid prewar with 850 square feet of space, a windowed kitchen that’s renovated and kind of cute, a windowed bathroom with a good tub.
    — Nora Deligter, Curbed, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of cute
Adjective
  • Fresh Air critic John Powers describes it as a unique blend of creepiness, sarcastic humor and political anger, unlike anything else on TV.
    — Brittney Melton, NPR, 2 Oct. 2026
  • This hampers several of my favorite performances, especially Harper, whose Ben is full of sarcastic indignation, and June Laporte as Ginny, an aspiring reporter in need of proper mentoring.
    — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of sarcastic
Adjective
  • Among them was Chromeo, whose sleek, playful funk sound traveled through the city’s indie and electronic scenes.
    — Isabela Raygoza, Billboard, 9 Oct. 2026
  • These glasses have plenty of personality with playful prints, unexpected motifs, and fun patterns.
    — Francesca Krempa, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of playful
Adjective
  • No working of any system or joy gathered from an unprovable satirical angle.
    — Sean Joseph OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The case could become noteworthy precedent for social media companies that rely on targets’ intellectual property in attempting to offer critical or satirical commentary.
    — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of satiric
Adjective
  • The Bongulo Paneer — cooked in bamboo — with a coconut and capsicum poriyal blends peanut chutney with acidic gongura sour cream and fiery gunpowder.
    — Heidi Finley, Charlotte Observer, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Other novelists have turned to acidic, class-conscious portraits of the underemployed—see Andrew Martin and Halle Butler.
    — Ryan Chapman, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of acidic

Browse Nearby Words

smart alecks
smart-alecky
smart-ass
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Smart-alecky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smart-alecky. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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