SHARP: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for SHARP?

Need another word that means the same as “sharp”? Find 128 synonyms and 30 related words for “sharp” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Sharp” are: crisp, astute, shrewd, abrupt, precipitous, shrill, acute, discriminating, incisive, keen, knifelike, penetrating, penetrative, piercing, sharp-worded, tart, acuate, needlelike, razor-sharp, pointed, tapering, tapered, spiky, excruciating, agonizing, intense, violent, stabbing, shooting, stinging, severe, fierce, searing, tangy, piquant, strong, acrid, burning, pungent, loud, high-pitched, high, harsh, strident, bitter, hard, cutting, scathing, caustic, biting, barbed, trenchant, mordant, acrimonious, acerbic, acid, sarcastic, sardonic, ill-tempered, spiteful, venomous, malicious, vitriolic, vicious, hurtful, nasty, unkind, cruel, wounding, abusive, heartfelt, very great, overpowering, distinct, clear-cut, clear, well defined, well focused, sudden, rapid, tight, angular, perceptive, observant, sharp-sighted, beady, discerning, percipient, perspicacious, sensitive, quick, quick-witted, clever, intelligent, intuitive, bright, agile, nimble, alert, quick off the mark, ready, apt, fine, probing, searching, insightful, knowing, canny, smart, stylish, fashionable, chic, modish, elegant, spruce, acutely, sharply, precisely, exactly, abruptly, suddenly, all of a sudden, unexpectedly, swindle, defraud, cheat, fleece, exploit

Sharp as a Verb

Definitions of "Sharp" as a verb

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “sharp” as a verb can have the following definitions:

• Cheat or swindle (someone), especially at cards.
• Raise the pitch of (a note) by a semitone.

Synonyms of "Sharp" as a verb (5 Words)

cheat	Be sexually unfaithful. I wish someone had told me my partner was cheating on me.
defraud	Illegally obtain money from (someone) by deception. She defrauded the customers who trusted her.
exploit	Use or manipulate to one’s advantage. These workers are at particular risk of being exploited in the workplace.
fleece	Cover as if with a fleece. The sky was half blue half fleeced with white clouds.
swindle	Obtain (money) fraudulently. He swindled me out of my inheritance.

Usage Examples of "Sharp" as a verb

• The fellow is drunk, let's sharp him.
• If you raise a note by one fret, you have sharped the note.

Sharp as an Adjective

Definitions of "Sharp" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “sharp” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

• Extremely steep.
• Very sudden and in great amount or degree.
• Marked by practical hardheaded intelligence.
• (of words or a speaker) critical or hurtful.
• Quick and forceful.
• Ending in a sharp point.
• Raised in pitch by one chromatic semitone.
• (of an object) having an edge or point that is able to cut or pierce something.
• Quick to take advantage, especially in an unscrupulous or dishonest way.
• Clearly defined.
• Tapering to a point or edge.
• (of a food, taste, or smell) acidic and intense.
• Having or showing speed of perception, comprehension, or response.
• Harsh.
• Having or made by a thin edge or sharp point; suitable for cutting or piercing.
• (of a key) having a sharp or sharps in the signature.
• (of an emotion or experience) felt acutely or intensely; painful.
• (of a note) a semitone higher than a specified note.
• (of an action or change) sudden and marked.
• (of clothes or their wearer) smart and stylish.
• (of musical sound) above true or normal pitch.
• (of a musical note) raised in pitch by one chromatic semitone.
• Distinct in outline or detail; clearly defined.
• Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions.
• (of sand or gravel) composed of angular grains.
• (of a bend, angle, or turn) making a sudden change of direction.
• Producing a sudden, piercing physical sensation or effect.
• (of something seen or heard) clearly defined.
• Having or emitting a high-pitched and sharp tone or tones.
• Keenly and painfully felt; as if caused by a sharp edge or point.
• (of a sound) sudden and penetrating.

Synonyms of "Sharp" as an adjective (115 Words)

abrupt	Surprisingly and unceremoniously brusque in manner. An abrupt reply.
abusive	Engaging in or characterized by habitual violence and cruelty. Abusive punishment.
acerbic	(especially of a comment or style of speaking) sharp and forthright. An acerbic tone piercing otherwise flowery prose.
acid	Having the characteristics of an acid. She was stung into acid defiance.
acrid	Strong and sharp. Her acrid remarks make her many enemies.
acrimonious	(typically of speech or discussion) angry and bitter. An acrimonious dispute about wages.
acuate	Ending in a sharp point.
acute	Denoting or designed for patients with an acute form of a disease. An acute housing shortage.
agile	Moving quickly and lightly. An agile mind.
agonizing	Extremely painful. An agonizing death.
alert	Quick to notice any unusual and potentially dangerous or difficult circumstances; vigilant. Caught by a couple of alert cops.
angular	Having angles or an angular shape. Angular chairs.
apt	Quick to learn. He is apt to ignore matters he considers unimportant.
astute	Marked by practical hardheaded intelligence. An astute businessman.
barbed	Having or covered with protective barbs or quills or spines or thorns or setae etc. A fair degree of barbed wit.
beady	Small and round and shiny like a shiny bead or button. A beady eyed observer.
biting	(of wit or criticism) harsh or cruel. He leant forward to protect himself against the biting wind.
bitter	Marked by strong resentment or cynicism. Bitter about the divorce.
bright	Not made dim or less bright. The bright stars of stage and screen.
burning	On fire. The burning question of independence.
canny	Pleasant; nice. She s a canny lass.
caustic	Sarcastic in a scathing and bitter way. Caustic jokes about political assassination talk show hosts and medical ethics.
chic	Elegantly and stylishly fashionable. She looked every inch the chic Frenchwoman.
clear	Clear and distinct to the senses easily perceptible. Clear glass.
clear-cut	Clear and distinct to the senses; easily perceptible.
clever	Quick to understand, learn, and devise or apply ideas; intelligent. Too clever to be sound.
crisp	(of a fruit or vegetable) firm and juicy. A crisp lettuce.
cruel	Causing pain or suffering. People who are cruel to animals.
cutting	Capable of cutting something. A cutting remark.
discerning	Having or revealing keen insight and good judgment. A discerning reader.
discriminating	Showing or indicating careful judgment and discernment especially in matters of taste. The discriminating eye of the connoisseur.
distinct	Recognizable; marked. A distinct flavor.
elegant	Suggesting taste, ease, and wealth. An elegant comfortable house.
excruciating	Extremely painful. Excruciating back pain.
fashionable	Popular and considered appealing or fashionable at the time. Fashionable clothes.
fierce	Having or displaying an intense or ferocious aggressiveness. The fire door had a fierce pneumatic return.
fine	Characterized by elegance or refinement or accomplishment. Fine flyaway hair.
hard	Unfortunate or hard to bear. Times were hard at the end of the war.
harsh	(of reality or a fact) grim and unpalatable. Drenched in a harsh white neon light.
heartfelt	Earnest. Heartfelt condolences.
high	Of a singer or instrument producing notes of relatively high pitch. People in high places.
high-pitched	Set at a sharp or high angle or slant.
hurtful	Harmful to living things. Her hurtful unconsidered words.
ill-tempered	Annoyed and irritable.
incisive	(of a person or mental process) intelligently analytical and clear-thinking. The songs offer incisive pictures of American ways.
insightful	Exhibiting insight or clear and deep perception-R.C.Angell. I don t have anything insightful to say about that.
intelligent	(of a device or building) able to vary its state or action in response to varying situations and past experience. An intelligent question.
intense	Extremely sharp or intense. Intense pain.
intuitive	(chiefly of computer software) easy to use and understand. His intuitive understanding of the readers real needs.
keen	Intense or sharp. We offer extremely keen rates.
knifelike	Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions. Piercing knifelike pains.
knowing	Showing or suggesting that one has knowledge or awareness that is secret or known to only a few people. Knowing instructors.
loud	Used chiefly as a direction or description in music loud with force. There were loud protests from the lumber barons.
malicious	Having the nature of or resulting from malice- Rudyard Kipling. The transmission of malicious software such as computer viruses.
modish	In the current fashion or style. It seems sad that such a scholar should feel compelled to use this modish jargon.
mordant	Harshly ironic or sinister. Fun ranging from slapstick clowning to savage mordant wit.
nasty	Very bad or unpleasant. A nasty shock.
needlelike	Ending in a sharp point.
nimble	Moving quickly and lightly. Nimble fingers.
observant	Quick to notice or perceive things. Her observant eye took in every detail.
overpowering	Extremely strong or intense; overwhelming. A feeling of overpowering sadness.
penetrating	(of a person’s eyes or expression) reflecting an apparent ability to see into another’s mind; intense. The students asked some penetrating questions.
penetrative	Having or showing clear insight. Frequent penetrative observations.
perceptive	Of or relating to perception. A perceptive observation.
percipient	Having good insight or understanding; perceptive. A percipient author.
perspicacious	Having a ready insight into and understanding of things. Much too perspicacious to be taken in by so spurious an argument.
piercing	Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions. I recall one moment of piercing sadness.
piquant	Attracting or delighting. A piquant face with large appealing eyes.
pointed	Having a sharpened or tapered tip or end. A pointed critique.
precipitous	Done with very great haste and without due deliberation- Shakespeare- Arthur Geddes. The track skirted a precipitous drop.
probing	Inquiring closely into something; searching. The surgeon s careful probing fingers.
pungent	(of comment, criticism, or humour) having a sharp and caustic quality. Pungent satire.
quick	Moving quickly and lightly. Quick of foot.
quick off the mark	Apprehending and responding with speed and sensitivity.
quick-witted	Mentally nimble and resourceful.
rapid	(of an action) characterized by great speed. They lost three wickets in rapid succession.
razor-sharp	As sharp as a razor.
ready	Keen or quick to give. Every time I rang up she was ready with some excuse.
sarcastic	Expressing or expressive of ridicule that wounds. Making sarcastic comments.
sardonic	Grimly mocking or cynical. Starkey attempted a sardonic smile.
scathing	Marked by harshly abusive criticism. His scathing remarks about silly lady novelists.
searching	Diligent and thorough in inquiry or investigation. You have to ask yourselves some searching questions.
searing	Having lost all moisture. A searing pain.
sensitive	(of a market) unstable and liable to quick changes of price because of outside influences. He was suspected of passing sensitive information to other countries.
severe	Severely simple. A severe worldwide depression.
sharp-sighted	Having very keen vision.
sharp-worded	Harsh.
shooting	Moving or growing quickly. I often feel a shooting pain at the end of my left arm.
shrewd	Having or showing sharp powers of judgement; astute. A shrewd career move.
shrill	Being sharply insistent on being heard. A shrill whistle.
smart	(of clothes) attractively neat and stylish. You look very smart.
spiky	Having or as if having especially high-pitched spots. She sounded spiky and defensive.
spiteful	Showing or caused by malice. A truly spiteful child.
spruce	Marked by up-to-dateness in dress and manners.
stabbing	Painful as if caused by a sharp instrument. A stabbing remark.
stinging	(of speech) harsh or hurtful in tone or character. A swarm of stinging insects.
strident	Being sharply insistent on being heard. Strident demands.
strong	Relating to or denoting the strongest of the known kinds of force between particles which acts between nucleons and other hadrons when closer than about 10 cm so binding protons in a nucleus despite the repulsion due to their charge and which conserves strangeness parity and isospin. A play full of strong language.
stylish	Fashionably elegant and sophisticated. The stylish resort of Gstadd.
sudden	Occurring or done quickly and unexpectedly or without warning. A sudden decision.
tangy	Having a strong, piquant flavour or smell. A tangy salad.
tapered	Becoming gradually narrower. Trousers with tapered legs.
tapering	Becoming thinner or narrower towards one end. Long tapering fingers.
tight	Pressed tightly together. They stood in a tight little group.
trenchant	Vigorous or incisive in expression or style. A trenchant argument.
unkind	Lacking kindness. The unkindest cut of all.
venomous	(of an animal, especially a snake) secreting venom, or capable of injecting venom by means of a bite or sting. The venomous tone of her voice.
very great	Precisely as stated.
vicious	Immoral. Vicious kicks.
violent	Marked by extreme intensity of emotions or convictions inclined to react violently fervid. A violent noise.
vitriolic	Filled with bitter criticism or malice. Vitriolic outbursts.
well defined	Resulting favorably.
well focused	Resulting favorably.
wounding	Causing physical injury. Most wounding to her was the loss of her independence.

Usage Examples of "Sharp" as an adjective

• A sharp-worded exchange.
• A sharp pain.
• Sharp winds.
• Her face was thin and her nose sharp.
• A sharp pencil.
• F sharp.
• The sharp crack of a twig.
• A sharp blow.
• There was a sharp crack of thunder.
• The job was a sharp contrast from her past life.
• Keep tools sharp.
• Her sharp disappointment was tinged with embarrassment.
• As sharp and incisive as the stroke of a fang.
• Sharp criticism.
• C sharp.
• He heard her sharp intake of breath.
• The bus creaked round a sharp hairpin bend.
• Fresh goats' milk cheese has a slightly sharper flavour than fromage frais.
• A sharp drop in the stock market.
• He could be very sharp with her.
• Paul's a sharp operator.
• There was a sharp increase in interest rates.
• Her sharp eyes missed nothing.
• His old mind was not so sharp as it once was.
• A sharp knife.
• She feared his sharp tongue.
• I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my back.
• A pencil with a sharp point.
• The scene was as sharp and clear in his mind as a film.
• A sharp drop.
• Cut the cake with a very sharp knife.
• A sharp photographic image.
• They were greeted by a young man in a sharp suit.

Sharp as an Adverb

Definitions of "Sharp" as an adverb

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “sharp” as an adverb can have the following definitions:

• Precisely (used after an expression of time.
• In a sudden or abrupt way.
• Above the true or normal pitch of musical sound.
• Changing suddenly in direction and degree.

Synonyms of "Sharp" as an adverb (8 Words)

abruptly	In a rude or curt manner. The forested terrain ascends abruptly.
acutely	Changing suddenly in direction and degree. An acutely inflamed gall bladder.
all of a sudden	To a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (`whole’ is often used informally for `wholly.
exactly	Used as a reply to confirm or agree with what has just been said. They met in 1989 and got married exactly two years later.
precisely	Exactly (used to emphasize the complete accuracy or truth of a statement. She always expressed herself precisely.
sharply	With a sudden and marked change; dramatically. The road twists sharply after the light.
suddenly	On impulse; without premeditation. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her side.
unexpectedly	In a way that was not expected. He died unexpectedly of a heart attack.

Usage Examples of "Sharp" as an adverb

• The meeting starts at 7.30 sharp.
• Turn sharp left here.
• The road twists sharply after the light.
• He heard him playing a little sharp on the high notes.
• He was brought up sharp by Helen's voice.
• Turn sharp right at the corner.

Associations of "Sharp" (30 Words)

acuity	Sharpness or keenness of thought, vision, or hearing. Intellectual acuity.
acute	Denoting or designed for patients with an acute form of a disease. Felt acute annoyance.
acutely	Having a rapid onset. We are all acutely aware of the fragility of our world.
appreciative	Having or showing appreciation or a favorable critical judgment or opinion. The team are very appreciative of your support.
astute	Having or showing an ability to accurately assess situations or people and turn this to one’s advantage. An astute businessman.
awl	A small pointed tool used for piercing holes, especially in leather.
biting	(of wit or criticism) harsh or cruel. A biting aphorism.
canny	Having or showing shrewdness and good judgement, especially in money or business matters. Canny investors will switch banks if they think they are getting a raw deal.
clipper	Shears for cutting grass or shrubbery (often used in the plural. A set of hair clippers.
crafty	Marked by skill in deception. They are looking for crafty people to join the group to make ornaments.
diacritical	(of a mark or sign) serving to indicate different pronunciations of a letter above or below which it is written.
discerning	Quick to understand- Nathaniel Hawthorne. A discerning reader.
discriminating	Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions. The discriminating eye of the connoisseur.
hock	Any of several white wines from the Rhine River valley in Germany hock is British usage.
incisive	Suitable for cutting or piercing. The most incisive move of a tight match.
insightful	Exhibiting insight or clear and deep perception. I don t have anything insightful to say about that.
keen	Having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions. Ear splitting explosive bursts keen and sharp.
keenness	A positive feeling of wanting to push ahead with something. He has expressed his keenness to retain his job.
penetrating	Tending to penetrate; having the power of entering or piercing. Her penetrating gaze.
perceptive	Having the ability to perceive or understand; keen in discernment. A perceptive eye.
piercing	A small hole in a part of the body, typically other than the ears, made so as to insert a ring, stud, or other piece of jewellery. Piercing knifelike pains.
pointed	Having a point. A pointed allusion to what was going on.
pungent	Strong and sharp. He has expressed some fairly pungent criticisms.
razor	Cut with a razor. The tapered cut is razored to give movement.
scissors	A gymnastic exercise performed on the pommel horse when the gymnast moves his legs as the blades of scissors move. A dummy scissors from David Thomas deceived the opposition.
shrewd	(of a blow) severe. A shrewd career move.
shrill	Utter a shrill cry. A concession to their shrill demands.
sickle	A short-handled farming tool with a semicircular blade, used for cutting corn, lopping, or trimming.
trident	A three-pronged spear, especially as an attribute of Poseidon (Neptune) or Britannia.
understanding	Characterized by understanding based on comprehension and discernment and empathy. My understanding was that he would find a new supplier.