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: sarcastic, impertinent, or irreverent in tone or manner
snarky lyrics
snarkily adverb

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Snarky vs. Sarcastic

Some have questioned whether snarky is a real word. There can be no doubt that it is; the adjective has been recorded in English since 1906. Its original meaning, “crotchety, snappish,” has largely been overtaken, however, by the far more frequently-encountered sense “sarcastic, impertinent or irreverent.” The precise difference between utterances described as sarcastic and snarky will vary somewhat based on the individual using each word. Some feel that sarcastic usually implies irony, or stating the opposite of what is really intended (for example, “thank you so much for your promptness” spoken to someone who arrives late), whereas snarky implies simple impertinence or irreverence (as when Downton Abbey's Dowager Countess asks Isobel Crawley, “does it ever get cold on the moral high ground?”)

Examples of snarky in a Sentence

The writer at No. 10, Fred Mustard Stewart, died last February at 74. His obituary in The Guardian contained this snarky observation: "Year in, year out, the 600-page mark did not daunt him." Dwight Garner, New York Times Book Review, 24 Feb. 2008
Edwards says his notorious $400 haircut and his 28,000-square-foot house are the obsessions of the media, not "normal voters." (He does have a snarkier press corps than RFK. Not only did reporters not criticize the size of Kennedy's Virginia mansion, they wrote fawning prose about the senator in the hopes of scoring an invitation.) Jonathan Darman, Newsweek, 30 July 2007
If your coworker confronts you, admit you were wrong. But don't overexplain your snarky comment—she may get angrier. Margaret Magnarelli, Glamour, April 2002
Even when he pays someone a compliment, it comes out snarky; recently Valentine said he thought Atlanta's Bobby Cox should be named National League Manager of the Year "because he's had to manage this year." It doesn't matter that until Monday, Valentine managed 1,703 games without making the playoffs. S. L. Price, Sports Illustrated, 11 Oct. 1999
working all day with such snarky jerks is exhausting with champagne as a lubricant, she unleashed an unending series of snarky comments for the duration of the wedding reception
Recent Examples on the Web Put in simpler terms: Bradley Cooper isn’t going to see your snarky remarks on Twitter, but your friends who poured their heart into that song / movie / one-person and were brave enough to put it into the world are. Jenelle Riley, Variety, 6 Mar. 2024 Etsy is a parade of snarky T-shirts, cards, candles and candy all aggressively anti-Valentine’s Day. Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2024 Then there was some snarky gamesmanship between the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce against Ravens kicker Justin Tucker. Bob McManaman, The Arizona Republic, 29 Jan. 2024 In a deadpan style, Downey went on to poke fun at critics’ snarky assessment of his performances. USA TODAY, 15 Jan. 2024 The two Kansas City-area Democratic members from the delegation – Rep. Emanuel Cleaver and Rep. Sharice Davids, have friendly wagers on the game. Cleaver, on the Missouri side, made a snarky video announcing his bet against Rep. Ro Khanna, a Silicon Valley Democrat. Daniel Desrochers, Kansas City Star, 8 Feb. 2024 Even the famously snarky Margaret Oliphant, one of Britain’s most prolific novelists and reviewers, marveled at his uncanny power in this regard. Katherine Hobbs, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2024 Ahead of Saturday's show, the Fifty Shades trilogy star took viewers on a snarky tour of Studio 8H, the comedy sketch show’s home for nearly 50 years, in a teaser clip. Brendan Le, Peoplemag, 28 Jan. 2024 Inspired by the West coast rapper’s eponymous football league, which has provided a valuable community service to his native L.A. for nearly two decades, this fun and dirty Amazon release has the D-O-double-G playing himself alongside a bunch of adorable pre-teens who are just as snarky and crude. Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'snarky.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

dialectal snark to annoy, perhaps alteration of nark to irritate

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of snarky was in 1906

Dictionary Entries Near snarky

Cite this Entry

“Snarky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snarky. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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