Added 9 October 2026
smear
/smɪə(ɹ)/ noun
In Latin: linō Wiktionary
noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about smear at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- Slanderous defamation.
- A thin tissue or blood sample spread on a glass slide and stained for cytologic examination and diagnosis under a microscope.
-
A blemish made by dirt.
he had a smudge on his cheek
verb
Origin
From Middle English smeren, smerien, from Old English smerian, smyrian, smierwan (“to anoint or rub with grease, oil, etc.”), from Proto-West Germanic *smirwijan, from Proto-Germanic *smirwijaną. Doublet of schmear. Cognate with Saterland Frisian smeere, Dutch smeren (“to smear, lubricate”), Low German smeren, German schmieren (“to smear, lubricate”), Danish and Norwegian Bokmål smøre (“to lubricate”), Norwegian Nynorsk smørja (“to lubricate”), Swedish smörja (“to grease”), Faroese and Icelandic smyrja.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)