I. ˈsmüth adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English smothe, from Old English smōth; akin to Old English smēthe smooth, Old Saxon smōthi
1.
a. : having a continuously even surface : being without roughness, points, bumps, or ridges especially to the touch
smooth tabletop
smooth fabric
smooth skin
smooth lawn
smooth road
b. : being without bristles or hair
my brother is a hairy man and I am a smooth man — Gen 27:11 (Authorized Version)
c. : not rough or scabrous : not pubescent : glabrous
a smooth leaf
d.
(1) : causing no resistance to a body sliding along its surface : frictionless
(2) of a reflecting surface : having surface irregularities small compared with the wave length of the reflected radiation
e. : less rough or harsh than is characteristic of the class
smooth file
sometimes : having its points or ridges leveled by wear
smooth tire
2. : free from all that would obstruct or impede progress : easily or comfortably traveled : presenting no obstacles or difficulties
broad smooth highways
trying to make his path smoother for him
3.
a. : even and uninterrupted in flow or flight : continuously flowing or gliding : moving or proceeding without breaks, abrupt changes or transitions : not jerky, jolting, or jarring
smooth stream
smooth flow of words
car came to a smooth stop
b. : capable of easy dexterity and effortlessly controlled movement
smooth dancer
c. : avoiding or minimizing what is harsh or unpleasant or objectionable : plausibly flattering : ingratiating
deceived by the smooth talk of the salesman
smooth villain
smooth handling of an embarrassing situation
smooth explanations of suspicious conduct
4.
a. : calm and unruffled in words, manner or behavior : serene , equable
smooth disposition
b. : amiable , courteous , friendly
5. : accompanied by calm weather : free from discomfort or difficulty
smooth channel crossing
smooth sailing from here on
6.
a. : performed so that each tone within the musical phrase glides or flows into the next : legato
b. : moving by small intervals — used of the progression of voice parts in harmonized music
7. Greek grammar
a. of a vowel : sounded without the aspirate
smooth vowel
b. of a stop consonant : being voiceless, unaspirated, and lenis
8.
a. : agreeable or soothing to one's ear, palate, feelings : bland , mild
smooth tone of voice
smooth syrup
smooth wine
b. : free from lumps : having perfect blending of the elements
smooth batter
smooth salad dressing
c. : having the pungency (as of alcohol) moderated by blending of other ingredients
a smooth cocktail
9. : relatively good — used especially of a poker hand in lowball; compare rough
10. : forming smooth colonies usually made up of organisms that form no chains or filaments, show characteristic internal changes, and tend to marked increase in capsule formation and virulence — used of dissociated strains of bacteria; compare mucoid
Synonyms: see easy , level , suave
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English smothen, from smothe, adjective, smooth
transitive verb
1. : to make smooth, level, or even on the surface : remove the surface inequalities and irregularities of
smooth soil in a flower bed
smooth the edge of a board
smooth cloth with an iron
smooth a rumpled bedsheet
2.
a. : to free from what is harsh, crude, offending, or disagreeable : refine , polish
smooth verses
sent to a school to smooth and polish his manners
b. : to make calm : soothe
3. : to minimize (as a fault, a difference) in order to allay anger or ill-will : palliate — often used with over
smoothing things over is practically a profession to mothers of families — Margaret Deland
4. : to free from obstruction or difficulty : make easy
smoothed his way with bribes
5.
a. : to remove (as wrinkles, creases) from a surface
smoothed the lines of worry away with her cool fingertips
b. : to press or rub into a flat form
nervously crumpling and smoothing out her handkerchief
c. : to remove expression from (one's face) : compose
6. : cause to lie evenly and in order : preen
took off her hat and smoothed down her hair
hen smoothing her ruffled feathers
7. : to change a broken line made up of sections of straight lines into (a curve) ; specifically : to free (a graph) from irregularities by ignoring random deviations
8. : monophthongize — used especially of the change of a vowel before a back consonant in the Anglian dialects of Old English
Anglian smoothing of ēa to ē
intransitive verb
1. obsolete : blandish , flatter
2. : to become smooth
the wind dropped and the waves smoothed down
III. adverb
Etymology: Middle English smothe, from smothe, adjective, smooth
: smoothly
smooth runs the water where the brook is deep — Shakespeare
IV. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English smothe, from smothe, adjective, smooth
1.
a. : a smooth stretch (as of land) ; specifically : meadow
b. : an intermittent space of smooth water
2. : the smooth part of anything : something that is smooth
learn to take the rough with the smooth
3.
[ smooth (II) ]
: act of smoothing or state of being smooth : a stroke which smooths
give a smooth to his hair
4.
[ smooth (II) ]
: a smoothing implement
5. : the side of a tennis racket on which the binding strings form a continuous line
calling rough or smooth to decide court and service
V. adjective
of a curve : being the representation of a function with a continuous first derivative