# smarting

Pronunciation: US say "SMART-ing" /ˈsmɑɹtɪŋ/; UK say "SMAHT-ing" /ˈsmɑːtɪŋ/

## Adjective

1. Sore and painful, with a sharp stinging quality.
   - Simple: Sore and stinging, the way a fresh scrape or cut feels.
   - _The antiseptic left a smarting line across the back of his hand._
   - _Her sunburned shoulders stayed smarting well into the evening._
3. Feeling lingering emotional hurt or embarrassment.
   - Simple: Feeling hurt or upset after something embarrassing or unkind.
   - _The author, smarting from a harsh review, avoided the press for weeks._
   - _He was still smarting after losing the election so publicly._

## Verb

2. Present participle and gerund of smart. — present participle and gerund of smart
   - Simple: Present participle of smart. Use it for something causing a sharp stinging pain right now.
   - _Her grazed palms were smarting all the way home._
   - _The cold wind set his bare ears smarting within minutes._

## Noun

4. A sharp stinging or sore sensation.
   - Simple: A sharp, stinging, sore feeling.
   - _Salt water on his cuts brought on a smarting that made him wince._
   - _A faint smarting lingered where the nettle had brushed her arm._

## Origin

From Middle English smertyng, from Old English smeortung ("smarting, itching"), equivalent to "smart" plus the suffix "-ing."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/smarting (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).