HOW TO PRONOUNCE
sharp
/ʃɑɹp/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:47
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What does sharp mean?
adjective
- Terminating in a point or edge, especially one that can cut or pierce easily; not dull, obtuse, or rounded.
- Intelligent.
- Raised by one semitone (denoted by the symbol ⟨♯⟩ after the name of the note).
More meanings (48)
adjective
- Higher in pitch than required.
- Having a strong acrid or acidic taste.
- Sudden, abrupt, intense, rapid.
- Illegal or dishonest.
- Keenly or unduly attentive to one's own interests; shrewd, verging on dishonest.
- Exact, precise, accurate; keen.
- Offensive, critical, or acrimonious; stern or harsh.
- Stylish, smart or attractive.
- Observant; alert; acute.
- Quick and alert.
- Strongly distinguishing or differentiating; acute.
- Forming a small or tight angle; especially, forming an angle of less than ninety degrees.
- Steep; precipitous; abrupt.
- Said of as extreme a value as possible.
- Tactical; risky.
- Piercing; keen; severe; painful.
- Eager or keen in pursuit; impatient for gratification.
- Composed of hard, angular grains; gritty.
- (obsolete) Fierce; ardent; fiery; violent; impetuous.
- (dated) Uttered in a whisper, or with the breath alone; aspirated; unvoiced.
- (obsolete) Hungry.
adverb
- To a point or edge.
- Piercingly.
- Eagerly.
- So as to make a sharp, or tight, angle.
- Exactly.
- In a higher pitch than is correct or desirable.
noun
- The symbol ⟨♯⟩, placed after the name of a note in the key signature or before a note on the staff to indicate that the note is to be played one chromatic semitone higher.
- A note that is played one chromatic semitone higher than usual; denoted by the name of the note that is followed by the symbol ⟨♯⟩.
- A note that is sharp in a particular key.
- The scale having a particular sharp note as its tonic.
- Something that is sharp.
- A hypodermic syringe.
- A sharp object; any item pointed enough to injure human skin.
- A dishonest person; a cheater.
- Part of a stream where the water runs very rapidly.
- A sewing needle with a very slender point, more pointed than a blunt or a between.
- Fine particles of husk mixed with coarse particle of flour of cereals; middlings.
- A sharpie (member of Australian gangs of the 1960s and 1970s).
- Alternative form of sharpie (“type of fishing boat”).
- Acronym of skinhead against racial prejudice.
- (dated) A scalpel or other edged instrument used in surgery.
- (dated, slang) An expert.
verb
- To raise the pitch of a note half a step making a natural note a sharp.
- To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper.
- (obsolete) To sharpen.
proper noun
- A surname.
- An unincorporated community in Ozark County, Missouri, United States.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/ʃɑɹp/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
In short, she was enclosed in a firmament of light, and of sharp hisses, resembling a sky-full of meteors close at hand.
The ringing impact of trucks, the sharp whistle of the engines from the junction, mingled with their shouts of “Men from Mars!”
More book examples (3)
Musical phrases drove each other rapidly through her mind, and the song of the cicada was now too long and too sharp.
At sight of her Anne tried to scramble to her feet, but sank back again with a sharp little cry of pain.
As they arose the girl’s revolver spoke in sharp staccato and one sank back to the deck again to rise no more.