Where does “smart” come from?
smart (Dutch) comes from Middle Dutch smarte, from Proto-Germanic smertaną, from Proto-Indo-European (s)merd- — to bite, to sting.
smart (Dutch): pain, sorrow, grief
Ancestry of “smart”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle Dutch | smarte | — |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | smertaną | to hurt |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)merd- | to bite, to sting |
Words derived from “smart”