| 释义 |
smartness|ˈsmɑːtnɪs|
Also 4 smartnes, 5 smertnesse.
[f. smart a. + -ness.]
1. Pain, smarting. rare.
c1412Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 2226 Disceyt, and..inward fikilnesse, Bulteth out schame, and causeþ gret smartnesse. 1855Bain Senses & Intell. ii. ii. §7 (1864) 184 A sensation of smartness is produced.
2. That which induces pain or distress; sharp discipline; severity (of something).
1303R. Brunne Handl. Synne 4966 To chastyse hem wyþ fyn awe And with þe smartnes of þe lawe. 1653Binning Serm. (1845) 561 If you find not the Smartness of the Gospel..ye are yet in your Sins. 1666Phil. Trans. I. 359 They [waters] had a rough smartness, as if they carried Sand or Gravel into the Eye. 1706Z. Cradock Serm. Charity (1740) 17 Mov'd by the smartness of a present calamity.
3. Vivacity and wit in conversation or writing.
1656Artif. Handsom. 111 Those sharp, Satyricall, and popular invectives..To which your Ladyship hath given as much (or more) edge and smartnesse, as ever I found from any. 1664Dryden Rival Ladies Ep. Ded., The sudden smartness of the answer. 1711Steele Spect. No. 132 ⁋2 The Quaker, who happened to be a Man of Smartness, answered. 1751Johnson Rambler No. 174 ⁋8 With no other hope than that of gaining the reputation of smartness and waggery. 1827Hallam Const. Hist. (1876) II. viii. 39 His letters to Strafford display some smartness, but no great capacity. 1886Manch. Exam. 27 Jan. 3/2 He has been led astray by that passion for smartness which is the bane of contemporary criticism.
4. Trimness or fashionableness in dress, etc.
1752–3A. Murphy Gray's Inn Jrnl. No. 17, The more humble, whose Genius does not exceed the Smartness of a Cut Bob. 1801tr. Gabrielli's Mysterious Husb. IV. 164 She..had an air of smartness which rather prepossessed the Prince's household in her favour. 1866Rogers Agric. & Prices I. xxii. 578 Several of the complaints refer to undue smartness in dress. 1892Mallock in N. Amer. Rev. July 29 Smartness..represents the perfection of superficial living, and it has a natural..influence over persons of a certain temperament.
5. a. Briskness, activity, alertness.
1867Macgregor Voy. Alone (1868) 34 Hasty smartness is slowest. 1873Daily News 27 Aug., Their thorough efficiency and soldierly smartness in a cavalry soldier's best work.
b. Mil. Neatness of dress and person combined with brisk orderly bearing.
1861Times 24 Sept., A want of the..soldierly spirit which begets attention to personal smartness. 1886Pall Mall G. 19 Oct. 4/3 Keep your person and accoutrements always neat, and acquire that quality..‘smartness’.
6. Extreme cleverness or shrewdness, esp. for one's own advantage. Chiefly U.S.
1800M. Edgeworth Little Merchants in Parent's Assistant (ed. 3) III. 111 His son's smartness was no longer useful in making bargains. 1819M. Wilmot Let. 8 Dec. (1935) 34 We have got ourselves settled in..with fewer plagues than almost any family of strangers could boast. This we owe..to Willys smartness in his quiet way. 1842Dickens Amer. Notes (1850) 171/1 This smartness has done more in a few years to impair the public credit..than dull honesty..could have effected in a century. 1843Marryat M. Violet xxxvi, I was perfectly au fait to all the tricks of Arkansas' smartness. 1890Spectator 26 Apr., Mr. Blaine..instructed his supporters in the Press and on the platform to proclaim the ‘smartness’ of his scheme. |