variants or less commonly whip smart or whipsmart
: very smart or clever
whip-smart dialogue
But underestimate or patronise Jessica at your peril. She's whip-smart, ultra-ambitious and brutally honest.Kerry Potter
He is also whip smart and tenacious, driven and efficient, typical of the breed so often attracted to academic medical research.Lisa Belkin

Examples of whip-smart in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
His affable demeanor, a velvety game show voice and whip-smart replies garnered him loads of fans during the show’s run, which started on Discovery Channel (2005-2012) before moving to Bravo for a recent reboot. Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2025 The Final Reckoning’] is whip-smart and razor-sharp, this tense eighth entry in one of the most exhilarating franchises of all time is another winner. Jack Dunn, Variety, 13 May 2025 Alisha Weir stars as the whip-smart Matilda Wormwood, who escapes her awful parents (Stephen Graham and Andrea Riseborough) by disappearing into books and finding a friend in Lashana Lynch’s sweet Miss Honey at her terrifying new school. Sara Netzley, EW.com, 7 May 2025 Sally Rooney Rooney’s moving, witty and whip-smart millennial fiction has struck a resonant chord with readers worldwide. Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for whip-smart

Word History

First Known Use

1942, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of whip-smart was in 1942

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Cite this Entry

“Whip-smart.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whip-smart. Accessed 23 May. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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