Smart-alecky

Smart-alecky is an adjective that describes a person who is irritatingly clever, often to the point of sarcasm or insolence. This term is typically used to characterize behavior that is overly confident and disrespectful, often manifesting as petty cleverness or a tendency to make remarks that show off one's intelligence, typically at another person's expense. The behavior associated with being smart-alecky can lead to frustrations in social interactions, especially when the individual lacks the self-awareness to understand how their comments are perceived by others.

Smart-alecky meaning with examples

• During the meeting, Tim couldn’t help but adopt a smart-alecky attitude, making sarcastic remarks about the project’s timeline. Rather than contributing to a constructive conversation, his comments created tension among the team and distracted from the agenda. Everyone seemed to roll their eyes at his snarky comments, wondering if he had anything meaningful to say.
• At the dinner party, Anna decided to showcase her smart-alecky side, interrupting conversations with overly clever quips that many found more annoying than amusing. While she believed her humor was playful, her friends began to feel exhausted by her incessant need to always be the wittiest person in the room. They longed for a moment of genuine conversation without her biting comments.
• In class, Jake’s smart-alecky responses earned him a reputation among his peers as the 'funny guy,' but his teachers often found him disruptive. While his witty remarks sometimes elicited laughter, they often overshadowed the lessons. Many classmates appreciated his humor, yet others felt it diminished the learning experience, as the focus shifted away from the subject matter.
• When his mother asked him to clean his room, Billy, in a smart-alecky tone, replied, 'Sure, right after I finish saving the world.' His comment, while meant to be humorous, only frustrated his mother further, leading to an age-old parent-child battleground over chores. Instead of embracing responsibility, he relied on sarcasm, missing the chance for a mature discussion.