Etymologically
Log in

smash

Etymology and origin of the English word smash

History Permalink
Confidence
Uncertain
Formation
Onomatopoeia
First attested
c. 1700

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /smæʃ/[1]

Etymology

It is probably imitative,[2][3][4] compare smack, mash, crash and clash;[2][3] MWU suggests a blend of smack and mash.[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

To kick downstairs: about 1700, before 1700 in Barnhart.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

The noun, a hard blow, is from 1725.[2][3][6] To break to pieces is from 1759 in Etymonline, 1764 in MWU and 1778 in Barnhart.[2][5][3] Mashed turnips is an obsolete slang sense of 1785.[6] A broken-up condition is from 1798, and the sound of smashing first appears in Jamieson's Scots dictionary (1808).[2][3] To act with crushing force is from 1813, and to strike violently from 1835.[2] A commercial failure is from 1839.[2][6] In tennis, a hard overhand stroke is from 1882.[3][6] A great success is from 1923, a smash hit, shortened to smash by 1930.[2][3] Smash-and-grab is from 1927.[2]

Timeline

  • c. 1700 – to kick downstairs.[2]
  • 1725 – a hard blow.[3]
  • 1778 – to shatter.[3]
  • 1839 – a bankruptcy.[2]
  • 1882 – in tennis.[3]
  • 1923 – smash hit.[3]

Modern meaning

Verb

  1. To break into pieces violently and noisily; to shatter.
  2. To throw or crash against something with force.
  3. To hit hard; in tennis, to hit the ball with a forceful overhand stroke.
  4. To defeat or destroy completely.

Noun

  1. The act or sound of smashing.
  2. A collision or crash.
  3. A hard overhand stroke in tennis or badminton.
  4. (informal) A great success; a smash hit.

Word family

  • smasher
  • smashable
  • smush
  • smashed
  • smashing
  • smash hit

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
Cite this entry

“Smash.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/smash. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·