What does "smoky" mean?
Filled with smoke.
Smoky
/ˈsmoʊki/ adj
adj ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Filled with smoke.
- Grammar: smoky is listed as adj.
- Nearest alternatives: acier, aerial, aerodynamic, aerostatic.
- Useful contrasts: clear, lucid, smokeless.
- Usage evidence: Let this smoky air out of the room and let some fresh air in.
How to use "smoky"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "smoky" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "smoky" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "smoky" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "smoky" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "smoky" is acting as adj in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "acier" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "smoky", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Filled with smoke.
"a smoky cabin"
- 2 Filled with smoke.; Filled with or enveloped in tobacco smoke.
"a smoky bar"
- 3 Giving off smoke.
"a smoky oil lamp"
- 4 Of a colour or colour pattern similar to that of smoke.
"The Pismire kinde of Aetius hath a smoky body, an ash-coloured neck, and the back as it were adorned with stars."
- 5 Having a flavour or odour like smoke; flavoured with smoke.
"a smoky whisky"
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 Resembling or composed of smoke.
"And let thy mustie vapours march so thicke, That in their smoakie rankes, his smothred light May set at noone, and make perpetuall night."
- 7 Blackened by smoke.
"Shepheard I take thy word, And trust thy honest offer’d courtesie, Which oft is sooner found in lowly sheds With smoakie rafters, then in tapstrie halls, And courts of Princes […]"
- 8 Having a deep, raspy quality, often as a result of smoking tobacco.
"“Stop the York four-day stage!” said he, forcing his smoky voice through a world of throat-embracing shawl […]"
- 9 Attractive in a sensual way; sultry.
"There was still that smoky little thing about her. The sexy swaying walk, the dark voice."
- 10 Having a dark, thick, bass sound.
"a few smoky jazz notes"
- 11 Giving off steam or vapour. obsolete
"1594, Thomas Kyd (translator), Cornelia (Cornélie) by Robert Garnier, London: Nicholas Ling and John Busbie, Act V, He wrencht it [his sword] to the pommel through his sides, That fro the wound the smoky blood ran bubling, Where-with he staggred;"
- 12 Obscuring or insubstantial like smoke. obsolete
"[…] to shewe them selfe playnely, to hate & deteste and abhorre vtterly, the pestylent contagyon of all suche smoky communycacyon."
- 13 Suspicious; open to suspicion; jealous. obsolete
"1765, Samuel Foote, The Commissary, Act I, in The Works of Samuel Foote, London: George Robinson et al., 1799, Volume 2, p. 18, […] this old brother of ours tho’ is smoky and shrewd, and tho’ an odd, a sensible fellow;"
Adjective
- 1 marked by or emitting or filled with smoke wordnet
- 2 tasting of smoke wordnet
Antonyms
Example
"Let this smoky air out of the room and let some fresh air in."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "smoky"?
Common synonyms include: acier, aerial, aerodynamic, aerostatic, aery, airy.
How do you use "smoky" in a sentence?
Let this smoky air out of the room and let some fresh air in.
How do you pronounce "smoky"?
Pronounced /ˈsmoʊki/.
Etymology
From Middle English smoky, smokie, equivalent to smoke + -y.