Nearby Words

smug

[smuhg] Origin

smug

[smuhg]
adjective, smug·ger, smug·gest.
1.
contentedly confident of one's ability, superiority, or correctness; complacent.
2.
trim; spruce; smooth; sleek.

Origin:
1545–55; perhaps < Middle Dutch smuc neat, pretty, nice

smug·ly, adverb
smug·ness, noun
un·smug, adjective
un·smug·ly, adverb
un·smug·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Smug is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
Collins
World English Dictionary
smug (smʌɡ)
 
adj , smugger, smuggest
1.  excessively self-satisfied or complacent
2.  archaic trim or neat
 
[C16: of Germanic origin; compare Low German smuck neat]
 
'smugly
 
adv
 
'smugness
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

smug
1551, "trim, neat, spruce, smart," possibly an alteration of Low Ger. smuk "trim, neat," from M.L.G. smücken "to adorn," and smiegen "to press close" (see smock). The meaning "having a self-satisfied air" is from 1701, an extension of the sense of "smooth, sleek" (1582),
EXPAND
which was commonly used of attractive women and girls.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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