Pronunciations
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/smɪθ/
Proper noun
An English surname originating as an occupation (the most common in Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand).
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
- Examples
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More examples (3)
Patingham selmonger, who, as it was reported, reneuced the Arians opinion before he dyed. The xvi. daye were burned [at the stake], at Staines. Robert Smith[,] painter, who in the tyme of his imprisonment, wrate byuers thinges in Metre, which were after put in print. At Stortford Stephan Harwoode Alebruer. And at Ware Thomas Fuſſe Jerkenmaker.
This ſyſtem, as it was much eſteemed by many antient fathers of the chriſtian church, ſo after the reformation it was adopted by feveral divines of the moſt eminent piety and learning and of the moſt amiable manners; particularly, by Dr. Ralph Cudworth, by Dr. Henry More, and by Mr. John Smith of Cambridge.
John is a most excellent name, and Smith is a surname which is worthy of respect and honor, but wo to the man on whom they are conjoined! For John Smith to aspire to senatorial dignities or to the laurel of a poet is simply ridiculous. Who is John Smith? He is lost in the multitude of John Smiths, and individual fame is impossible.
[Smith is] Common to every village in England, north, south, east, and west. There are 300,000 Smiths in England.
More examples (2)
Jada Pinkett Smith found herself at the center of conflict when her husband Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock at the Oscars ceremony March 27. Rock joked about Pinkett Smith’s shaved head – a look she has said is more than a style preference.
Clearly the more numerous the holders of a surname, the more likely it is to be polygenic – that is, having arisen in many different places. In no case discovered, however, is a name evenly distributed among the population, though Smith comes close to it.
A male given name transferred from the surname.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several places in the United States: An unincorporated community in LaPorte County, Indiana.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several places in the United States: An unincorporated community in Harlan County, Kentucky.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several places in the United States: An unincorporated community in York County, South Carolina.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several places in the United States: A small unincorporated community in Lyon County, Nevada, named for an early settler family.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several places in the United States: A ghost town in Humboldt County, California.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
- Synonyms
- Smiths Turnout
Several places in the United States: A number of townships in the United States, listed under Smith Township.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
A hamlet in the Municipal District of Lesser Slave River, northern Alberta, Canada.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Douglas County, Oregon, United States, a tributary of the Umpqua River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Montana, United States, a tributary of the Missouri.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Yukon and British Columbia, Canada, a tributary of the Liard River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Virginia and North Carolina, United States, a tributary of the Dan River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in California, United States, flowing from the Klamath Mountains into the Pacific.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in New Hampshire, United States, a tributary of the Pemigewasset River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Linn County, Oregon, United States, a tributary of the McKenzie River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Several rivers: A river in Quebec, Canada, a tributary of the Montmorency River.
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable
Smith College (a women's college in Massachusetts, U.S.)
Usage- Countable
- Uncountable