sharp

The word “sharp” means having a fine edge or point that can cut or pierce easily. In plain terms, able to cut easily, or (of a person, pain, sound, or turn) intense, sudden, or keenly perceptive.

“Sharp” is pronounced shahp (/ʃɑɹp/ in IPA).

Here is “sharp” used in a sentence: “Be careful, that knife is very sharp.”

Words with a similar meaning to “sharp” include on the dot and precisely.

The opposite of “sharp” — its antonyms — are blunt, dull, dim, dim-witted and slow.

Depending on how it is used, “sharp” can be an adjective and an adverb.

The word “sharp” comes from Old English. From Old English scearp, going back to a Germanic root meaning "to cut" — the same ancient root that gave us "shear" and "scrape.".

“Sharp” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

In music, where the two are most often paired, a sharp raises a note by a semitone and a flat lowers it by a semitone. More generally, describing a blade, the opposite of sharp is blunt or dull rather than flat. So "flat" contrasts with sharp mainly in pitch, not in cutting edges.

For a knife or point, the opposite of sharp is blunt or dull, meaning it cannot cut or pierce easily. In other senses the opposite shifts: a sharp mind versus a slow one, a sharp image versus a blurry one, or a sharp bend versus a gentle one.

Beyond a keen cutting edge, sharp has many senses. It can mean intelligent or quick-witted (a sharp mind), sudden or abrupt (a sharp turn), intense (a sharp pain), stylish (a sharp suit), or, in music, a note raised by a semitone. Context decides which meaning applies.

A newly honed kitchen knife is sharp, slicing through food with little effort. A needle, a shard of glass, a razor blade, and a thorn are all sharp because they have a fine edge or point that can pierce skin. Sharpness is what lets them cut easily.