smart arse
1
9.4
- noun
- /smɑːt ɑːs/
- Offensive
:
sabelotodo
- I knew from the start he was a smart arse.
Examples
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Listen, smart arse.
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- Some smart arse lawyer.
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If it sounds like I am being a smart arse, it's probably because I am IRL anyway.
Blog text (20) -
I understand the need to be protective of your design, but if a judge delivers a verdict, you should be an adult about it and just place the damn notice clearly instead of acting like a smart-arse teenager.
Blog text (19) -
I think he’s a smart arse.
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Yan Jian, don't be a smart arse.
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Everyone knows he's just being a smart arse with those silly comments.
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She often responds with a smart arse remark whenever someone criticizes her.
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He can't help but be a smart arse, always hiding his insults behind clever jokes.
Synonyms
43
7.4
A person who makes clever or rude jokes to seem smart
30
7.7
A person who acts like they know everything and annoys others
12
9.6
Acting annoyingly clever by making rude or sarcastic remarks
8
9.9
A person who makes rude, clever remarks to annoy others
5
7.5
A person who acts as if they know everything and annoys others
2
9.9
A person who makes rude clever remarks to annoy others
2
9.6
A person who acts as if they know everything and annoys others
1
4.6
A small round coloured sweet or a cheeky clever person
1
7.1
A person who often makes short funny or sarcastic remarks
1
9.9
A person who acts like they know everything and makes rude comments
1
8.5
A person who shows off knowledge and annoys others
A person who annoys others by acting like they know everything and making sarcastic remarks
A person who acts smart to annoy or show off
A person or remark that is clever but rude
Antonyms
How Annoying
Surface Forms
Morphology
smart + arse
The meaning is partially inferable: 'smart' conveys cleverness or cheekiness and 'arse' is a crude insult, so a learner can guess this labels someone negatively for being clever/cheeky. However the specific sense—sarcastic, irritating, slangy insult—and the pragmatic nuance are culture- and register-dependent and not fully predictable from the parts alone, making it only partially transparent to a B1 learner.
Etymology
The noun smart arse may come from a simple picture: someone being too smart and acting like an arse, a rude or annoying person. That image explains the modern use — someone who makes clever, cheeky remarks and so is called 'a person who makes clever but irritating comments'.