smarmy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Levi plays Scott as somewhat smarmy and disingenuous — it’s hard to feel for this guy when he seems absolutely clueless about his own kids.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2025

It starred Coleman as “Buffalo Bill” Bittinger, the smarmy, arrogant, dimwitted daytime talk show host who, unhappy at being relegated to the small-time market of Buffalo, New York, takes it out on everyone around him.

From Seattle Times • May 17, 2024

Haters and enjoyers picked apart Tesfaye's inexperienced acting, nepotism baby Lily-Rose Depp's singing – who played Joselyn, the female pop star counterpart to Tesfaye's smarmy cult leader Tedros – and Levinson's screenwriting and direction.

From Salon • Aug. 29, 2023

So why do I call this calming music “avant-garde jazz” and not the smarmy candy known as “smooth jazz”? Simply: smooth jazz is a category.

From New York Times • Jul. 5, 2023

“Alex just played on his BBC computer. Hugo’s smarmy as ever. Nigel’s doing quadratic equations for fun. Uncle Brian...”

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell