as in intelligence
the ability to learn and understand or to deal with problems
she had the smarts to start college at age 16, but perhaps not the emotional maturity
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Recent Examples of smarts
Mark Medina, Forbes.com, 17 May 2026
That is a 38% discount, which means $250 off, on a giant Quantum Dot display featuring Dolby Vision HDR, Fire TV smarts, and a sleek bezel-less design.
—Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 14 May 2026
With those smarts, there’s just a hard-working player who will outright create his own points to pounce at.
—Shayna Goldman, New York Times, 14 May 2026
In it, after an injury ends his NBA dreams, Myron Bolitar reinvents himself as a sports agent — using charm, smarts, and a ruthless partner to navigate the high-stakes and dirty world of sports, where saving his clients often means risking himself.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 13 May 2026
Blue Bell Knoll was also the band’s first Billboard 200 entry, and a major step forward for the band’s unorthodox pop smarts.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 12 May 2026
In this retiree state with much smarts and experience but sorely values-twisted by years of lopsided Republican rule under Govs.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 May 2026
Washington’s first-round pick out of Ohio State displayed his preternatural ability and football smarts as rookies convened in Ashburn, Virginia.
—Les Carpenter, Washington Post, 8 May 2026
The director again shows his action smarts by creating a brief lull — albeit while leaning hard on one of the more sudsy passages of composer Fernando Velázquez’s generic score — before the next shuddering impact sends the number of casualties skyrocketing.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 28 Apr. 2026
James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 14 Nov. 2025
Noun
Wallace, Lu Dort and Alex Caruso all defend at the wing with physicality, smarts and effort, which enables Gilgeous-Alexander to take risks defensively and conserve his workload on the offensive end.
—Mark Medina, Forbes.com, 17 May 2026
That is a 38% discount, which means $250 off, on a giant Quantum Dot display featuring Dolby Vision HDR, Fire TV smarts, and a sleek bezel-less design.
—Juhi Wadia, PC Magazine, 14 May 2026
With those smarts, there’s just a hard-working player who will outright create his own points to pounce at.
—Shayna Goldman, New York Times, 14 May 2026
In it, after an injury ends his NBA dreams, Myron Bolitar reinvents himself as a sports agent — using charm, smarts, and a ruthless partner to navigate the high-stakes and dirty world of sports, where saving his clients often means risking himself.
—Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 13 May 2026
Blue Bell Knoll was also the band’s first Billboard 200 entry, and a major step forward for the band’s unorthodox pop smarts.
—Al Shipley, SPIN, 12 May 2026
In this retiree state with much smarts and experience but sorely values-twisted by years of lopsided Republican rule under Govs.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 May 2026
Washington’s first-round pick out of Ohio State displayed his preternatural ability and football smarts as rookies convened in Ashburn, Virginia.
—Les Carpenter, Washington Post, 8 May 2026
The director again shows his action smarts by creating a brief lull — albeit while leaning hard on one of the more sudsy passages of composer Fernando Velázquez’s generic score — before the next shuddering impact sends the number of casualties skyrocketing.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 28 Apr. 2026
Verb
It’s been 10 years since Fantastic Four flopped, but its box-office failure still smarts for star Miles Teller.
—James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 14 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smarts
Noun
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Miguel Díaz Canel’s comments come a day after Axios reported, citing US intelligence, that Havana had acquired hundreds of drones and discussed plans to use them against Washington’s military assets in the region.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
19 May 2026
-
Company leadership and investors emphasize that operating physical retail without real-time intelligence in 2026 is equivalent to leaving billions of dollars on the table.—
Arthur Zaczkiewicz,
Footwear News,
19 May 2026
Verb
-
Symptoms include fever, headache, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea and a rash.—
Youri Benadjaoud,
ABC News,
19 May 2026
-
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome causes fatigue, fever, muscle aches, abdominal problems, headaches, chills and dizziness in the early stages, and late symptoms include chest tightness, coughing, shortness of breath and lungs filling with fluid.—
Mary Whitfill Roeloffs,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
Edward Busby, whose intellect, IQ and the possible resulting disability were the focus of the argument in his appeals, died when pentobarbital was injected into his body.—
Emerson Clarridge,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
15 May 2026
-
This Penelope matches her husband not just in intellect but in passion.—
Eliana Dockterman,
Time,
12 May 2026
Verb
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Losing Evans, linebacker Lavonte David and cornerback Jamel Dean hurts, but the Bucs deserve the benefit of the doubt until someone else in this division proves something.—
Josh Kendall,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
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Truncating the final season so drastically definitely hurts the first half of the series finale, which feels chaotic and rushed.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 May 2026
Noun
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That wouldn't have made sense if Rodgers weren't on the team.—
Armando Salguero OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
17 May 2026
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What doesn’t make sense is why the same amenity is not available at the airport in West Palm Beach.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
17 May 2026
Verb
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This one pains me as a Roth-era Van Halen fan, but there is no denying the band found incredible radio success with new frontman Sammy Hagar in the fold.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
6 May 2026
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His disaffection baffles his acquaintances and pains his tubercular wife (a superb Quinn Jackson), whose doctor (Lambert Tamin) has only contempt for her husband’s agonizing.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smarts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smarts. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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