- a complete smash, especially a wreck of one or more vehicles.
Origin of smash-up
- to break to pieces with violence and often with a crashing sound, as by striking, letting fall, or dashing against something; shatter: He smashed the vase against the wall.
- to defeat, disappoint, or disillusion utterly.
- to hit or strike (someone or something) with force.
- to overthrow or destroy something considered as harmful: They smashed the drug racket.
- to ruin financially: The depression smashed him.
- Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis. to hit (a ball or shuttlecock) overhead or overhand with a hard downward motion, causing the shot to move very swiftly and to strike the ground or table usually at a sharp angle.
- to break to pieces from a violent blow or collision.
- to dash with a shattering or crushing force or with great violence; crash (usually followed by against, into, through, etc.).
- to become financially ruined or bankrupt (often followed by up).
- to flatten and compress the signatures of a book in a press before binding.
- the act or an instance of smashing or shattering.
- the sound of such a smash.
- a blow, hit, or slap.
- a destructive collision, as between automobiles.
- a smashed or shattered condition.
- a process or state of collapse, ruin, or destruction: the total smash that another war would surely bring.
- financial failure or ruin.
- Informal. smash hit.
- a drink made of brandy, or other liquor, with sugar, water, mint, and ice.
- Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis.
- an overhead or overhand stroke in which the ball or shuttlecock is hit with a hard, downward motion causing it to move very swiftly and to strike the ground or table usually at a sharp angle.
- a ball hit with such a stroke.
- of, relating to, or constituting a great success: That composer has written many smash tunes.
Origin of smash
Synonyms for smashSee more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com
Related Words for smash-updisaster, burst, slam, blow, downfall, wreck, breakup, ruin, breaking, sock, boom, crack, wham, whack, breakdown, crash, collapse, failure, bang, wallop
Examples from the Web for smash-up
Contemporary Examples of smash-up
Which means that they do a smash-up job of planning that extra special, over-the-top anniversary or birthday extravaganza.The Problem With Libertarian Women is Not Libertarian Men
January 8, 2013
Historical Examples of smash-up
Then came the smash-up at Avonmouth, and my mother liked them less and less.The Stark Munro Letters
J. Stark Munro
Why, the smash-up of the Sisters' title,—didn't you hear that?Susy, A Story of the Plains
In this case there was a "smash-up," for Tom James was not always sleeping and drinking.The Magnificent Montez
As they learned later a defective rail had caused the smash-up.The Motor Boys on the Atlantic
Not many could have been in a smash-up like that and come out unharmed.The Forest of Mystery
James H. Foster
- a bad collision, esp of cars
- (tr, adverb) to damage to the point of complete destructionthey smashed the place up
- to break into pieces violently and usually noisily
- (when intr, foll by against, through, into, etc) to throw or crash (against) vigorously, causing shatteringhe smashed the equipment; it smashed against the wall
- (tr) to hit forcefully and suddenly
- (tr) tennis squash badminton to hit (the ball) fast and powerfully, esp with an overhead stroke
- (tr) to defeat or wreck (persons, theories, etc)
- (tr) to make bankrupt
- (intr) to collide violently; crash
- (intr often foll by up) to go bankrupt
- smash someone's face in informal to beat someone severely
- an act, instance, or sound of smashing or the state of being smashed
- a violent collision, esp of vehicles
- a total failure or collapse, as of a business
- tennis squash badminton a fast and powerful overhead stroke
- something having popular success
- (in combination)smash-hit
- slang loose change; coins
- with a smash
Word Origin for smash
1725, "hard blow," from smash (v.). Meaning "broken-up condition" is from 1798; that of "failure, financial collapse" is from 1839. Tennis sense is from 1882. Meaning "great success" is from 1923 ("Variety" headline, Oct. 16, in reference to Broadway productions of "The Fool" and "The Rise of Rosie O'Reilly").