9. Fierce; ardent; fiery; violent; impetuous. "In sharp contest of battle." Milton.
A sharp assault already is begun.
Dryden. 10. Keenly or unduly attentive to one's own interest; close and exact in dealing; shrewd; as, a sharp dealer; a
sharp customer.
The necessity of being so sharp and exacting.
Swift. 11. Composed of hard, angular grains; gritty; as, sharp sand. Moxon.
12. Steep; precipitous; abrupt; as, a sharp ascent or descent; a sharp turn or curve.
13. (Phonetics) Uttered in a whisper, or with the breath alone, without voice, as certain consonants,
such as p, k, t, f; surd; nonvocal; aspirated.
Sharp is often used in the formation of self- explaining compounds; as, sharp-cornered, sharp-edged,
sharp-pointed, sharp-tasted, sharp-visaged, etc.
Sharp practice, the getting of an advantage, or the attempt to do so, by a tricky expedient. — To
brace sharp, or To sharp up (Naut.), to turn the yards to the most oblique position possible, that the
ship may lie well up to the wind.
Syn. — Keen; acute; piercing; penetrating; quick; sagacious; discerning; shrewd; witty; ingenious; sour; acid; tart; pungent; acrid; severe; poignant; biting; acrimonious; sarcastic; cutting; bitter; painful; afflictive; violent; harsh; fierce; ardent; fiery.
Sharp
(Sharp) adv.
1. To a point or edge; piercingly; eagerly; sharply. M. Arnold.
The head [of a spear] full sharp yground.
Chaucer.
You bite so sharp at reasons.
Shak. 2. Precisely; exactly; as, we shall start at ten o'clock sharp. [Colloq.]
Look sharp, attend; be alert. [Colloq.]
Sharp
(Sharp), n.
1. A sharp tool or weapon. [Obs.]
If butchers had but the manners to go to sharps, gentlemen would be contented with a rubber at cuffs.
Collier. 2. (Mus.) (a) The character [&sharp] used to indicate that the note before which it is placed is to be
raised a half step, or semitone, in pitch. (b) A sharp tone or note. Shak.
3. A portion of a stream where the water runs very rapidly. [Prov. Eng.] C. Kingsley.
4. A sewing needle having a very slender point; a needle of the most pointed of the three grades, blunts,
betweens, and sharps.
5. pl. Same as Middlings, 1.
6. An expert. [Slang]
Sharp
(Sharp), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sharped ; p. pr. & vb. n. Sharping.]
