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
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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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of smart-alecky
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
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
Adjective
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Fall travel season is here, and my suitcase is officially in its comfy-but-cute era.—
Chaise Sanders,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Nov. 2025
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Shoppers call out the cute and functional design.—
Kim Grundy,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The Marriage Story star first appeared as a child in an uncredited role in the Scorsese film — Ladd's first taste of major acclaim as the sarcastic waitress Flo.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
3 Nov. 2025
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The kicking game was so bad that Freeman sounded like Brian Kelly at his sarcastic best when asked about Noah Burnette, Erik Schmidt and Marcello Diomede combining to miss two extra points and one field goal.—
Pete Sampson,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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And based on the tight bonds he's formed with his costars (not to mention lots of playful, platonic PDA), the feeling is very mutual.—
Julie Jordan,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
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Outfielder Kiké Hernández had some fun at Drake’s expense and took a playful shot at Drizzy when addressing the Dodger Stadium crowd on the mic.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Since that inaugural episode in late July, a steady stream of blistering satirical installments has not let up on the POTUS and key White House officials, from VP JD Vance to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
10 Nov. 2025
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Where Tom is the satirical end point of corporate America’s moral rot, Guiteau is like his spiritual predecessor, a 19th-century American striver so intoxicated by the promise of self-making that rejection feels like cosmic betrayal.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Highly acidic foods like pickles and tomatoes will react with the can after an extended period of time, causing both taste and texture changes so pay particularly close attention to expiration dates on these items.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
11 Nov. 2025
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Soil and Water Japanese maple likes a slightly acidic, humus-rich soil with good drainage.—
Luke Miller,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Smart-alecky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smart-alecky. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
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