1
b
: practicing deception : dishonest
a snide merchant
2
: unworthy of esteem : low
a snide trick
3
: slyly disparaging : insinuating
snide remarks
snidely adverb
snideness noun

Examples of snide in a Sentence

a snide trick to get the couple to gamble on a bet they had no real chance of winning some small-time crook who was selling snide gems to gullible tourists
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The stage version of Good Night, and Good Luck (titled after Murrow’s snide sign-off at the end of each show) opens and closes with Murrow’s speech in 1958 at the annual meeting of the Radio and Television News Directors Association. Armond White, National Review, 30 Apr. 2025 Letterman may be the obvious precedent but Mulaney’s delivery is less snide than lightly panicked, as if some Netflix thugs have their hands on a switch off-camera, eager to cut to black. Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 17 Apr. 2025 At one point in the film, Michelle, as Harriet, makes a snide observation about a girl in her class as the camera pans over to the girl at her locker, which was covered in photos of teen idols. Mara Wilson, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025 Dunning’s deadpan style ensures none of the humor keels over to the snide. Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for snide

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

circa 1859, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of snide was circa 1859

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Cite this Entry

“Snide.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snide. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

snide

adjective
1
: low entry 2 sense 9b, mean
a snide trick
2
: slyly uncomplimentary or insulting
snide remarks

More from Merriam-Webster on snide

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