smatter

See also: s'matter

English

Etymology

From Middle English smatteren, smateren. Compare Swedish smattra, Danish and Norwegian smadre (all of which mean to patter), German schmettern (“to resound”).

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsmæ.tə/
(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsmæ.təɹ/, [ˈsmæ.ɾɚ]
Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -ætə(ɹ)

Verb

smatter (third-person singular simple present smatters, present participle smattering, simple past and past participle smattered)

(intransitive) To talk superficially; to babble, chatter.
- 1533, John Heywood, A Mery Play Betwene the Pardoner and the Frere‎^[1], London: Wyllyam Rastell:
  What standest thou there all the day smatterynge
- c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene v]:
  And why, my lady wisdom? hold your tongue,
  Good prudence; smatter with your gossips, go.
- 1733, Jonathan Swift “On Poetry” in The Poetical Works of Jonathan Swift, London: William Pickering, 1833, Volume 2, pp. 63-64,^[2]
  For poets, law makes no provision;
  
  The wealthy have you in derision:
  
  Of state affairs you cannot smatter;
  
  Are awkward when you try to flatter;
(transitive) To speak (a language) with spotty or superficial knowledge.
- 1891, Robert Louis Stevenson, chapter 2, in In the South Seas‎^[3], New York: Scribner, published 1896, page 9:
  The languages of Polynesia are easy to smatter, though hard to speak with elegance.
(transitive, figuratively) To study or approach superficially; to dabble in.
To have a slight taste, or a slight, superficial knowledge, of anything; to smack.

Derived terms

Translations

intransitive: talk superficially

Arabic: هَذَى (haḏā)
Bulgarian: бърборя (bg) (bǎrborja)
French: lantiponner (fr) (archaic)
Galician: parolar (gl)
German: labern (de) (rude), schwätzen (de), schwafeln (de)
Hebrew: טָרָרָם (he) (táraram)
Italian: blaterare (it)
Latin: blaterō
Russian: болта́ть (ru) impf (boltátʹ)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: бр̀бљати impf

Roman: br̀bljati (sh) impf
Slovene: brbljati
Spanish: charlar (es), parlotear (es)

to speak (a language) with spotty or superficial knowledge

Arabic: لَحَنَ (laḥana)
Bulgarian: говоря повърхностно (govorja povǎrhnostno)
Catalan: xampurrejar (ca)
French: baragouiner (fr)
Galician: chapurrear (gl), cortar (gl)
German: radebrechen (de)
Italian: masticare (it)
Russian: кове́ркать (ru) impf (kovérkatʹ)
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: ло̀мити impf

Roman: lòmiti (sh) impf
Spanish: chapurrar (es), chapurrear (es)

to study or approach superficially

Noun

smatter (plural smatters)

A smattering (small number or amount).
a smatter of applause
A smattering (superficial knowledge).

Anagrams

Matters, matters

Swedish

Etymology

Deverbal from smattra.

Noun

smatter n

short, sharp, quickly repeating noises, like large raindrops against a window or someone typing quickly on a typewriter, spatter

Declension

Declension of **smatter**
		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	smatter	smatters
singular	definite	smattret	smattrets
plural	indefinite	—	—
plural	definite	—	—

References