different between clever vs smooth

English

Etymology

From East Anglian dialectal English cliver (“expert at seizing”), from Middle English cliver (“tenacious”), perhaps from Old English *clifer, clibbor (“clinging”), or perhaps from East Frisian (compare Saterland Frisian kluftich), or dialectal Norwegian klover (“ready, skillful”); possibly influenced by Old English clifer (“claw, hand”). Related to cleave. Perhaps influenced by Welsh celfydd (“talented, dexterous, expert”).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?kl?v?/
• Rhymes: -?v?(r)
• Hyphenation: clev?er

Adjective

clever (comparative cleverer or more clever, superlative cleverest or most clever)

1. Nimble with hands or body; skillful; adept.
   • a. 1898, Francis James Child (collator), Child's Ballads, 198: "Bonny John Seton",

     The Highland men, they're clever men / At handling sword and shield,

2. Resourceful, sometimes to the point of cunning.
   • 1890, Joseph Jacobs (collator), Molly Whuppie, English Fairy Tales,

     The youngest of the three strange lassies was called Molly Whuppie, and she was very clever. She noticed that before they went to bed the giant put straw ropes round her neck and her sisters', and round his own lassies' necks, he put gold chains. So Molly took care and did not fall asleep, but waited till she was sure every one was sleeping sound. Then she slipped out of the bed, and took the straw ropes off her own and her sisters' necks, and took the gold chains off the giant's lassies. She then put the straw ropes on the giant's lassies and the gold on herself and her sisters, and lay down.
3. Smart, intelligent, or witty; mentally quick or sharp.
   • 19th c, Charles Kingsley, A Farewell,

     Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever; / Do noble things, not dream them all day long: / And so make life, death, and that vast forever / One grand, sweet song.

   • 1912, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Constance Garnett (translator), The Brothers Karamazov, Book V, Chapter 7: "It's Always Worth While Speaking to a Clever Man",

     I would have sent Alyosha, but what use is Alyosha in a thing like that? I send you just because you are a clever fellow. Do you suppose I don't see that? You know nothing about timber, but you've got an eye.

4. Showing inventiveness or originality; witty.
5. (anthropology, of an Aboriginal Australian) Possessing magical abilities.
   • 1904, Journal & Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, Vol. XXXVIII, page 255,

     When a clever man is out hunting and comes across the tracks of, say, a kangaroo, he follows them along and talks to the footprints all the time for the purpose of injecting magic into the animal which made them.

   • 1947, Oceania, Volumes 16-17, page 330,

     Prior to this, the two women, who were “clever,” and possessed a certain amount of magical “power,” […] .
6. (obsolete) Fit; suitable; having propriety.
   • 18th c, Jonathan Swift, Alexander Pope (later lines), Imitation of Horace, 1852, Charles Knight (collator), Half-hours with the Best Authors, Volume 4, page 188,

     I can't but think 'twould sound more clever, / To me and to my heirs forever.

7. (obsolete) Well-shaped; handsome.
   • 1712, John Arbuthnot, The History of John Bull, Undated modern edition, Library of Alexandria, unnumbered page,

     The girl was a tight, clever wench as any was.

8. (US, dated) Good-natured; obliging.
9. (Britain, colloquial) Fit and healthy; free from fatigue or illness.

Synonyms

• (smart, intelligent or witty): quick-witted, sharp-witted
  • See also Thesaurus:intelligent
• (resourceful, perhaps cunning): cunning, street-smart
• (nimble or skillful): adroit, talented
• (showing inventiveness): ingenious
• (possessing magical powers): magical

Antonyms

• (smart, intelligent or witty): dull, stupid
• (resourceful, perhaps cunning): ineffectual, naive
• (nimble or skillful): clumsy
• (showing inventiveness):
• (possessing magical powers): natural

Derived terms

Translations

References

Further reading

• clever in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• clever in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• clever at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• Clerve

German

Etymology

From English clever.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?kl?v?]
• Hyphenation: cle?ver

Adjective

clever (comparative cleverer or clevrer, superlative am cleversten)

1. clever

Declension

Further reading

• “clever” in Duden online

Middle English

Noun

clever

1. Alternative form of clevere

English

Alternative forms

• smeeth (dialectal)
• (verb): smoothe

Etymology

From Middle English smoothe, smothe, smethe, from Old English sm?þ and Old English sm?þe, both from Proto-Germanic *smanþaz, *smanþiz, of unknown origin. Cognate with Scots smuith (“smooth”), Low German smood and smödig (“smooth, malleable, ductile”), Dutch smeuïg (“smooth”) (from earlier smeudig).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /smu?ð/
• Rhymes: -u?ð

Adjective

smooth (comparative smoother, superlative smoothest)

1. Having a texture that lacks friction. Not rough.
   • 1695, John Dryden (translator), Observations on the Art of Painting by Charles Alphonse du Fresnoy

     The outlines must be smooth, […] imperceptible to the touch, and even, without eminence or cavities.

   • “A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron; and she looked it, always trim and trig and smooth of surface like a converted yacht cleared for action. ¶ Near her wandered her husband, orientally bland, invariably affable, […].
2. Without difficulty, problems, or unexpected consequences or incidents.
3. Bland; glib.

   • This smooth discourse and mild behavior oft / Conceal a traitor.
4. Flowing or uttered without check, obstruction, or hesitation; not harsh; fluent.
   • 1670, John Milton, The History of Britain

     the only smooth poet of those times}}

   • 1713, John Gay, The Fan

     When sage Minerva rose, / From her sweet lips smooth elocution flows.

5. (of a person) Suave; sophisticated.
6. (of an action) Natural; unconstrained.
7. (of a motion) Unbroken.
8. (chiefly of water) Placid, calm.
9. (of an edge) Lacking projections or indentations; not serrated.
10. (of food or drink) Not grainy; having an even texture.
11. (of a beverage) Having a pleasantly rounded flavor; neither rough nor astringent.
12. (mathematics, of a function) Having derivatives of all finite orders at all points within the function’s domain.
13. (mathematics, of a number) That factors completely into small prime numbers.
14. (linguistics, classical studies, of a vowel) Lacking marked aspiration.
15. (of muscles, medicine) Involuntary and non-striated.

Synonyms

• (having a texture lacking friction): even
• (without difficulty or problems): fluid

Antonyms

• rough
• uneven
• bumpy

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

smooth (comparative smoother, superlative smoothest)

1. Smoothly.

Noun

smooth (plural smooths)

1. Something that is smooth, or that goes smoothly and easily.

   • The smooth of his neck.

   • 1862, William Makepeace Thackeray, The Adventures of Philip

     I think you and I will take the ups and the downs , the roughs and the smooths of this daily existence and conversation
2. A smoothing action.
3. A domestic animal having a smooth coat.
4. A member of an anti-hippie fashion movement in 1970s Britain.
5. (statistics) The analysis obtained through a smoothing procedure.

Translations

Verb

smooth (third-person singular simple present smooths, present participle smoothing, simple past and past participle smoothed)

1. (transitive) To make smooth or even.

   Synonym: smoothen

2. (transitive) To reduce to a particular shape or form by pressure; to press, to flatten.

3. (transitive) To make straightforward or easy.
   • 2007, Beth Kohn, Lonely Planet Venezuela (page 379)

     Caracas can be a tough place but the tremendously good-natured caraqueños smoothed my passage every step of the way.

4. (transitive) To calm or palliate.

   to smooth a person's temper

5. (statistics, image processing, digital audio) To capture important patterns in the data, while leaving out noise.
6. (West Country) To stroke; especially to stroke an animal's fur.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• smoothing on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• shtoom