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

Relevance

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
  • At their on-screen meet cute, Apatow hands Bamford $500 cash just to pitch her on her own documentary.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The showstopper is a very cute idea where each baker has to make a dessert cart with at least three classic desserts on it.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of cute
Adjective
  • Eidra pushes her tendency to get glib and sarcastic rather than risk being vulnerable and honest to its farthest limits.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The interest has been driven largely by the brand's casual, sarcastic tone and active participation in online trends.
    — Megan Sauer, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of sarcastic
Adjective
  • In a Harris Poll survey published Wednesday, 65% of American adults reported spending $100 or more on playful activities or products — such as craft kits or action figures — for personal enjoyment between June 2025 and June 2026.
    — Renée Onque, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
  • For Grande, whose ponytail has long been as recognizable as her voice, the new look is a playful departure that still stays true to her vibe.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of playful
Adjective
  • In his essay, Baron Cohen says that’s the point, because the character is a satirical figure designed to expose prejudice.
    — K.J. Yossman, Variety, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Riehle played Tom Smykowski, a cynical Initech product manager, in Mike Judge’s 1999 satirical comedy Office Space, sharing credits with Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, Stephen Root and Gary Cole.
    — Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of satiric
Adjective
  • Equatic pumps seawater through an electrolyzer, where an electric current passes through a sandwich of plastic and metal plates and separates the water into two streams, one alkaline and one acidic, while also producing oxygen and hydrogen.
    — Alec Luhn, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Under alkaline conditions, splitting water molecules takes over 100 times longer than in acidic environments.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 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 25 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of emissary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 23

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All