Synonyms of smart-alecky

smart-alecky

adjective

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

• cute
• playful
• flippant
• wise
• smart-ass
• smart
• smart-aleck
• facetious
• inappropriate
• smart-assed
• wiseass
• flip
• smarty-pants
• pert
• mischievous
• rude
• casual
• sassy
• impudent
• cocky
• frivolous
• cheeky
• impish
• waggish
• saucy
• roguish
• fresh
• impertinent
• disrespectful
• glib
• flighty
• thoughtless
• breezy

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• sincere
• earnest
• serious
• solemn
• sober
• grave
• somber

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

• sarcastic
• satiric
• acidic
• acid
• barbed
• sardonic
• biting
• acerbic
• caustic
• smart-aleck
• cynical
• snarky
• corrosive
• scathing
• ironic
• mordant
• pungent
• smart-mouthed
• acrid
• acidulous
• sharp
• tart
• cutting
• harsh
• acerb
• sour
• wry
• blunt
• concise
• incisive
• scalding
• trenchant
• brisk
• flippant
• spiky
• poignant
• dry
• cross
• gruff
• sharp-tongued
• facetious
• severe
• vitriolic
• keen
• pithy
• tongue-in-cheek
• brusque
• curt
• abrupt
• stringent
• acrimonious
• resentful
• bitter
• terse
• snippy
• succinct
• sourish
• tartish
• insincere
• crisp
• backhanded
• rough
• snippety

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• amusing
• playful
• merry
• mild
• gentle
• waggish
• droll
• bland
• diplomatic
• polite
• sportive
• smooth
• good-natured
• urbane
• gracious
• good-humored
• affable
• hospitable
• cordial
• genial
• suave
• sociable

Example Sentences

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