smarmy
/ˈsmɑɹ.mi/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.24 in modern English
13
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Falsely earnest, smug, ingratiating, or pious.
Example Sentences
- "a smarmy salesman with a big smile"
- "“Hey, slow down, nature boy.” “Y'know, screw you, Jen. I'm sick of your smarmy comments. I may not be the toughest guy out there, or the smartest, but at least I can admit it. All you ever do is complain and tear down your friends and pick on people and--” “But I'm just kidding!” “Yeah, you're always kidding.” “Hey, Alex, you know you get the most abuse because you're my best friend. Sorry about that.” “You're apologizing?” “Yeah.” “Okay. Anyway, let's find some help.” “You really think I'm smarmy?” “Yeah.” “I always thought of myself as more of the snide type.”"
- "Starring a smarmy dog and scores of hapless flying wildfowl, Duck Hunt was the game that introduced many to the joys of the NES Zapper lightgun."
- "He looked faintly loutish, with smarmy hair and a hint of a moustache."
- "I pulled on my smarmy t-shirt and my ragged jeans and dragged myself to report to my supervisor."
Etymology
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈsmɑɹ.mi/
- British English: /ˈsmɑː.mi/