smite

[ smahyt ]

verb (used with object)

, smote or (Obsolete) smit; smit·ten or smit; smit·ing.

1. to strike or hit hard, with or as with the hand, a stick, or other weapon:

   She smote him on the back with her umbrella.

   Synonyms: slap, buffet, cuff, knock

2. to deliver or deal (a blow, hit, etc.) by striking hard.
3. to strike down, injure, or slay:

   His sword had smitten thousands.

4. to afflict or attack with deadly or disastrous effect:

   smitten by polio.

5. to affect mentally or morally with a sudden pang:

   His conscience smote him.

6. to affect suddenly and strongly with a specified feeling:

   They were smitten with terror.

7. to impress favorably; charm; enamor:

   He was smitten by her charms.

verb (used without object)

, smote or (Obsolete) smit; smit·ten or smit; smit·ing.

1. to strike; deal a blow.

smite

/ smaɪt /

verb

1. to strike with a heavy blow or blows
2. to damage with or as if with blows
3. to afflict or affect severely

   smitten with flu

4. to afflict in order to punish
5. intrfoll byon to strike forcibly or abruptly

   the sun smote down on him

Derived Forms

• ˈsmiter, noun

Other Words From

• smiter noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of smite¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English smiten, Old English smītan; cognate with German schmeissen “to throw,” Dutch smijten

Word History and Origins

Origin of smite¹

Old English smītan; related to Old High German smīzan to smear, Gothic bismeitan, Old Swedish smēta to daub

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. smite hip and thigh. hip ¹( def 9 ).

Example Sentences

Imprecatory prayer: The act of praying for God to smite his enemies.

From Salon

“Curtis and I served together in the state Senate, he is your state senator. He is Republican. I am a Democrat. But when we team up in a bipartisan manner, we will smite evil.”

From Seattle Times

“He worked with my papa once, a long time ago. He’s not like the other knights. Ilya Muromets uses holy magic to smite his enemies, and Alyosha Popovich uses strength magic to crush them. But Dobrynya’s magic is...”

From Literature

“The new liberal-driven meme is meant to depict Biden as having superpowers, able to smite an al-Qaeda leader and pass legislation through Congress with ease,” The Washington Post’s Matt Viser wrote in August 2022.

From Washington Post

“That’s how I relate to it. I made peace with that because I thought God was this person that wanted to smite me. Like, ‘I’m going to hell because I’m wrong.’

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• afflict