smarten

English

Etymology

From smart +‎ -en.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsmɑːt(ə)n/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: smart‧en

Verb

smarten (third-person singular simple present smartens, present participle smartening, simple past and past participle smartened)

1. (transitive) To make smarter in appearance; to refurbish or spruce up.
   • 1997 June 26, J. K. Rowling [pseudonym; Joanne Rowling], Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter; 1), London: Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN:

     The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting.

2. (transitive) To increase the speed of (one's travel on foot, etc.).
   • 2001, Vernon Robinson, If I Should Die Before I Wake, page 264:

     I braced myself and smartened my pace, shouldering my way through the crowd.

3. (transitive) To augment with computer technology.

   Synonym: computerize

   • 2008, Roger Neeson Anderson, Albert Boulanger, John A. Johnson, Computer-aided Lean Management for the Energy Industry, page 335:

     How do we achieve this smartening of the grid? The CALM approach in the future will be to use reinforcement learning (RL) controllers as a basis for optimizing the synergy between operators and automation.

Derived terms

• smarten up

Anagrams

• Arments, artsmen, martens, raments, sarment, starmen

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑrtən

Etymology 1

From Middle Dutch smarten, smerten, from Old Dutch *smertan, from Proto-West Germanic *smertan, from Proto-Germanic *smertaną.

Verb

smarten

1. (transitive, archaic, poetic) to grieve, inflict suffering

   Zijn vertrek smartte mij zeer. ― His departure grieved me greatly.

Conjugation

Inflection of smarten (weak)
infinitive	smarten
past singular	smartte
past participle	gesmart
infinitive	smarten
gerund	smarten n
	present tense	past tense
1st person singular	smart	smartte
2nd person sing. (jij)	smart	smartte
2nd person sing. (u)	smart	smartte
2nd person sing. (gij)	smart	smartte
3rd person singular	smart	smartte
plural	smarten	smartten
subjunctive sing.1	smarte	smartte
subjunctive plur.1	smarten	smartten
imperative sing.	smart
imperative plur.1	smart
participles	smartend	gesmart
1) Archaic.

Related terms

• smart

 

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

smarten

1. plural of smart

Middle English

Verb

smarten

1. Alternative form of smerten