smite

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/smaɪt/
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Hard striking sits at the center, reaching older literary ideas of punishment, disaster, conscience, sudden feeling, and a rare name for a heavy blow.
Practice using this word in conversation

Examples

  • The warrior took a wild smite at the ball.
  • Famine smote the valley after the harvest failed.
  • The poem pictures thunder smiting the mountain.
  • She left the gallery smitten with the painting.
  • The hero raised his sword and smote the shield.

Similar words

hit
captivate
affect
bash
chasten
enchant
blow
plague
wallop
whack

Meanings

Strike hard

verb
literature
literary
To hit someone or something with a heavy, forceful blow, especially in older, biblical, or heroic writing.

Usage

Use smite when the blow should sound weighty, old-fashioned, or dramatic, not for ordinary everyday hitting.

Examples

  • The hero raised his sword and smote the shield.
  • The old tale says the giant smote the stone gate.
  • A sudden blast smote the tower at dawn.
  • The warrior vowed to smite anyone who crossed the bridge.
  • Each blow smote the bronze bell with a deep sound.
  • The poem pictures thunder smiting the mountain.

Common mistakes

The irregular past forms are often regularized by mistake.
IncorrectCorrect
The knight smited the shield. The knight smote the shield.
The warrior has smited the gate. The warrior has smitten the gate.
The hammer smite the anvil. The hammer smites the anvil.
The boxer smote his opponent in a casual match report. The boxer hit his opponent in a casual match report.

Similar words

strike
hit
blow
bash
clobber
wallop
whack

Punish or afflict

verb
religion
literary
To bring sudden harm, defeat, illness, or punishment on someone, often with a sense of divine judgment or fate.

Usage

Use smite for punishment or disaster when the sentence has a religious, moral, or strongly dramatic tone.

Examples

  • The legend says a curse smote the kingdom.
  • Famine smote the valley after the harvest failed.
  • The prophet warned that judgment would smite the city.
  • A sudden illness smote the army in camp.
  • His conscience smote him after the lie.
  • The story tells how pride was smitten by ruin.

Common mistakes

The word is sometimes used for mild trouble that is too small for its forceful tone.
IncorrectCorrect
A slow queue smote my lunch break. A slow queue ruined my lunch break.
The plague smited the town. The plague smote the town.
The village was smote by famine. The village was smitten by famine.
The court smote him a fine. The court punished him with a fine.

Similar words

punish
afflict
strike
chasten
plague
curse
overwhelm

Captivate or deeply affect

verb
emotion
neutral
To affect someone suddenly and strongly, especially with love, admiration, fear, guilt, or another powerful feeling.

Usage

Use smite mainly in the past participle smitten, especially for strong attraction or sudden emotional impact.

Examples

  • He was smitten with her from their first conversation.
  • The critics were smitten by the singer's voice.
  • She left the gallery smitten with the painting.
  • The child was smitten with fear when the lights went out.
  • His conscience smote him before he could answer.
  • The travelers were smitten by the island's beauty.

Common mistakes

The active form is often forced where modern English expects the participle smitten.
IncorrectCorrect
Her smile smited him at once. He was smitten with her smile at once.
I smite with the new design. I am smitten with the new design.
They were smote by the music. They were smitten by the music.
She is smitten to him. She is smitten with him.

Similar words

captivate
charm
enchant
affect
move
overwhelm
impress

A heavy blow

noun
literature
archaic
A rare word for a hard strike or blow, now mostly found in archaic style, fantasy writing, or game language.

Usage

Use smite as a noun only when a deliberately archaic or game-like tone fits the context.

Examples

  • The hammer's smite rang through the forge.
  • One final smite broke the lock.
  • The old poem gives every smite the weight of judgment.
  • A holy smite ended the battle in the game.
  • The warrior took a wild smite at the ball.
  • Each smite against the shield sounded like thunder.

Common mistakes

The rare noun is often confused with the much commoner verb.
IncorrectCorrect
The knight smite the door. The knight smote the door.
Several smite echoed in the hall. Several smites echoed in the hall.
A smite means a small smile. A smite is a rare word for a heavy blow.
The spell gave a smote to the monster. The spell gave a smite to the monster.

Similar words

blow
strike
hit
thump
clout
wallop
bash

Usage

Use smite when an old, biblical, heroic, or strongly dramatic tone is wanted, and use smitten for the common modern feeling sense.

Common mistakes

Smited is used for the past or participle instead of smote or smitten, and the rare noun is sometimes mistaken for ordinary modern English.

Etymology

From Middle English smiten, from Old English smītan, first meaning to smear, soil, or defile. The later English senses developed around striking, attacking, and being suddenly affected.

FAQ

What does smite mean?

Smite means to strike hard, punish severely, or affect someone suddenly and strongly.

What is the past tense of smite?

The usual past tense is smote.

What is the past participle of smite?

The usual past participle is smitten, though smote is also found in some uses.

Is smite old-fashioned?

Yes. The striking and punishing senses are mainly literary, archaic, biblical, or deliberately dramatic.

What does smitten mean?

Smitten can mean struck or afflicted, but in modern English it often means strongly attracted or delighted.

Can smite be a noun?

Yes, but the noun is rare. It means a heavy blow and appears mostly in archaic, fantasy, or game contexts.

Does smite mean divine punishment?

It often can, especially in biblical or mythic writing where a god, curse, plague, or fate brings harm.

What is a common mistake with smite?

The form smited is usually wrong where standard English expects smote or smitten.

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