noun · verb · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
/smɛlt/
UK:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɛlt
CMU ARPABET:S M EH1 L T
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
Any small anadromous fish of the family Osmeridae, found in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and in lakes in North America and northern part of Europe.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A fool; a simpleton.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Production of metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
Any of the various liquids or semi-molten solids produced and used during the course of such production.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
1982, Raymond E. Kirk and Donald F. Othmer, Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, Wiley, →ISBN, page 405, The green liquor, ie, [sic] the solution obtained on dissolving the smelt, contains an insoluble residue called dregs, which gives it a dark green appearance.
1996, Arthur J. Wilson, The Living Rock: The Story of Metals Since Earliest Time and Their Impact on Civilization, When the smelt was complete the crucible could be lifted out and the metal poured directly into the moulds, thus avoiding the need to break it up and remelt [...]
2000, Julian Henderson, The Science and Archaeology of Materials: An Investigation of Inorganic Materials, [...] can vary in different positions in the furnace and during the smelt. Furnaces are unlikely to survive the smelts; all that often remains on metal production sites is just furnace bases and broken fragments of furnaces [...]
2002, Jenny Moore, “Who Lights the Fire? Gender and the Energy of Production”, in Moira Donald and Linda Hurcombe (eds.), Gender and Material Culture in Archaeological Perspective, Palgrave Macmillan, →ISBN, page 130, Women are allowed to play some small part in the smelt if they are breastfeeding or post-menopausal (van der Merwe and Avery, 1988).
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
verb
Meaning 5
simple past and past participle of smell
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: form-of, participle, past
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
verb
Meaning 6
To produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
small trout-like silvery marine or freshwater food fishes of cold northern waters
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
small cold-water silvery fish; migrate between salt and fresh water
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: fish
Narrower terms: American smelt, rainbow smelt, European smelt, sparling
9
verb
Meaning 9
extract (metals) by heating
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: produce, make, create
History
Etymology
From Middle English smelt, from Old English smelt, from Proto-West Germanic *smelt, from Proto-Germanic *smeltaz.
From Middle Dutch smelten (“to melt”) or Middle Low German smelten (“to melt”), from Old Dutch *smeltan or Old Saxon smeltan, both from Proto-West Germanic *smeltan, from Proto-Germanic *smeltaną (“to melt”). Related to English melt and Old English meltan (“to melt”). Cognate to Dutch smelten, German schmelzen.
From very early Middle English smelte; likely to derive from Old English, but not recorded.
Across languages
Translations
51 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Bulgarian:
ко́рюшка
(kórjuška)
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Catalan:
eperlà
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Chinese Mandarin:
胡瓜魚 /胡瓜鱼
(húguāyú)
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Czech:
koruška
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Estonian:
tint
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Finnish:
kuore
— fish of the family Osmeridae
French:
éperlan
— fish of the family Osmeridae
German:
Stint
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Ingrian:
kurvi
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Irish:
cualarach
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Irish:
smealt
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Italian:
sperlano
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Japanese:
胡瓜魚
(kyūriuo)
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Kazakh:
қиярбалық
(qiärbalyq)
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Māori:
ngaore
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Māori:
paraki
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Māori:
rangiriri
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Māori:
kehakeha
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Mi'kmaq:
gaqpesaw
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Polish:
stynka
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Russian:
ко́рюшка
(kórjuška)
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Scottish Gaelic:
dubh-bhreac
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Spanish:
eperlano
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Swedish:
nors
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Veps:
sinikod
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Walloon:
spierlin
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Welsh:
brwyniad
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Welsh:
gwyniad Ebrill
— fish of the family Osmeridae
Bulgarian:
плавка
(plavka)
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
Bulgarian:
стопилка
(stopilka)
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
Dutch:
smelten
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
Finnish:
sula
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
German:
Schmelze
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
Russian:
распла́в
(raspláv)
— any of the molten liquids involved in these processes
Bulgarian:
стопявам
(stopjavam)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Chinese Mandarin:
冶煉 /冶炼
(yěliàn)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Chinese Mandarin:
熔煉 /熔炼
(róngliàn)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Czech:
tavit (rudu)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Finnish:
sulattaa
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Galician:
fundir
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
German:
verschmelzen
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Ancient Greek:
χωνεύω
(khōneúō)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Indonesian:
melebur
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Italian:
fondere
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Portuguese:
fundir
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Russian:
спла́вить
(splávitʹ)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Russian:
сплавля́ть
(splavljátʹ)
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Spanish:
fundir
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Spanish:
soldar
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Spanish:
copelar
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
Tagalog:
tugnawin
— to fuse produce metal, especially iron, from ore in a process that involves heating and chemical reduction of metal compounds into purified metal
