smicker

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English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle English smiker, from Old English smicer, smicor (beauteous, beautiful, elegant, fair, fine, neat, tasteful), from Proto-West Germanic *smikr, from Proto-Germanic *smikraz (fine, elegant, delicate, tender), from Proto-Indo-European *smēyg- (small, delicate), from Proto-Indo-European *smē-, *smey- (to smear, stroke, wipe, rub). Cognate with Middle High German smecker (neat, elegant), Ancient Greek σμικρός (smikrós), μικρός (mikrós, small, short), Lithuanian smeigti (to lunge, thrust, jab), Latin mīca (crumb, morsel, bit).

For the verb, compare Swedish smickra (to flatter, coax, wheedle, butter up), Danish smigre (to flatter).

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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smicker (comparative more smicker, superlative most smicker)

  1. (archaic) Elegant; fine; attractive, beautiful.
    • 1606, John Ford, Fame's Memorial:
      No, his deep-reaching spirit could not brook
      The fond addiction to such vanity;
      Regardful of his honour he forsook
      The smicker use of court-humanity.
  2. (archaic) Amorous; wanton.
  3. (archaic) Handsome, spruce; smart, dapper.
    • 1590, Thomas Lodge, “Corydon’s Song”, in Rosalynde:
      A smicker boy, a lither swain,
      Heigh ho, a smicker swain,
      That his love was wanton fain, []

Verb

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smicker (third-person singular simple present smickers, present participle smickering, simple past and past participle smickered)

  1. (intransitive, archaic) To look amorously or wantonly.
    • 1808, original 1668, John Dryden, Walter Scott, An Evening's Love:
      [] Maskall, must you be smickering after wenches, while I am in calamity?
  2. (intransitive, chiefly Scotland) To look or smile seductively or amorously.
  3. (intransitive, chiefly Scotland) To laugh or smile in a sniggering or leering way; smirk.
    • 2014, Crystal Evans, Every Man Deserves A Good Jacket, page 116:
      I gave him a questioning look and he hurled a pillow at me. “Who you a look pon[sic] so?” “Me baby father” He smickered.

Derived terms

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Anagrams

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Swedish

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Etymology

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Deverbal from smickra

Noun

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smicker n

  1. flattery (usually insincere to gain favor)
    Synonym: smörande

Declension

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Declension of smicker 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative smicker smickret smicker smickren
Genitive smickers smickrets smickers smickrens
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References

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