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sharp
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
sharp
I.adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a clear/sharp outline
▪ Peeling off the tape after the paint has dried leaves a clear outline to the shapes.
a sharp click (=loud and quick)
▪ There was a sharp click, and the panel opened like a tiny door.
a sharp cry (=loud, short, and sudden)
▪ He gave a sharp cry of pain.
a sharp disagreementformal (= strong disagreement)
▪ There were sharp disagreements between Republicans and Democrats.
a sharp distinction (=very clear)
▪ The President drew a sharp distinction between his party and the Republican Party.
a sharp exchange (=one that shows someone disapproves of something or is annoyed)
▪ The proposed bill provoked some sharp exchanges in the House of Commons.
a sharp frost (=a sudden severe frost)
▪ There had been a sharp frost overnight.
a sharp pain (=short but severe)
▪ She felt a sharp pain in the back of her throat.
a sharp reduction (=large and quick)
▪ High interest rates brought about a sharp reduction in sales.
a sharp tap
▪ A few sharp taps with a hammer will force the nail through the surface.
a sharp/dramatic/marked drop in sth
▪ The results showed a sharp drop in profits.
a sharp/stark/strong contrast (=very great)
▪ There is a sharp contrast between the type of people who read the two newspapers.
a sharp/tight bend (=a curve that changes direction suddenly)
▪ That road sign means you are approaching a sharp bend.
a sharp/tight curve (=one that turns suddenly in another direction)
▪ There's a tight curve in the road up ahead.
a stark/sharp reminder (=strong or unpleasant)
▪ This incident is a stark reminder of the dangers police officers face every day.
a tight/sharp corner (=very curved and difficult to drive around)
▪ Go slowly because there’s a sharp corner up ahead.
dramatic/sharp (=large and sudden)
▪ What has led to this dramatic increase in prices?
drastic/sharp cuts (=big and sudden reductions)
▪ He resigned over drastic cuts in the education budget.
fierce/bitter/harsh/sharp criticism (=involving angry feelings)
▪ The prison system has been the object of fierce criticism.
good/sharp/acute
▪ My hearing isn't as good as it used to be.
▪ Owls and other predatory birds have very acute hearing.
in sharp/stark etc contrast
▪ We are still getting some sun, in marked contrast to last year’s everlasting grey skies.
keep a sharp lookout (=watch extra carefully)
▪ When you’re driving, keep a sharp lookout for cyclists.
loud/sharp crack
▪ There was a sharp crack as the branch broke off.
quick/dry/sharp etc wit
▪ His sharp wit had them all smiling.
sharp retort
▪ He was about to make a sharp retort.
sharp shooter
sharp turn
▪ There’s a sharp turn coming up ahead.
sharp
▪ Be careful using that knife - it's very sharp.
sharp
▪ The fish has small but very sharp teeth.
sharp/drastic/severe cutback
▪ sharp cutbacks in the military budget
sharp/steep fall
▪ the sharp fall in the birth rate in European countries
sharp/steep (=by a large amount)
▪ The higher prices caused a sharp decline in sales.
sharp/steep (=great and sudden)
▪ There’s been a sharp rise in house prices.
shoot sb a quick/sharp/warning etc look/glance
▪ ‘You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.’ Michelle shot him a furious glance.
▪ Jack shot an anxious look at his mother.
stand in sharp/stark etc contrast to sth
▪ The mountains stand in stark contrast to the area around them.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
as
▪ It was about eight inches long, double edged and as sharp as a razor.
▪ Roper, who is as sharp with a put-down as he is with a knockdown, has run out of worthy opponents.
▪ The rain fell almost horizontally, its bite as sharp as darts.
▪ She saw herself, all of her, as sharp.
▪ Steel threaded through her muscles, and her senses became as sharp as a cat's.
▪ He was a tallish man with a mind as sharp as a razor.
▪ A searching, frantic hand savagely grasped Maggie's hip, and she yelped as sharp nails pierced her skin.
▪ Dan comments' Paceley was as sharp as a tack and super dependable.
o'clock
▪ At nine o'clock sharp, the party chieftains met in John Major's room.
▪ Tony's gon na bring up the lorry at six o'clock sharp on Saturday night.
■ NOUN
contrast
▪ His lack of hypocrisy is in sharp contrast to some politicians.
▪ In sharp contrast, growth in the incomes of those in general or family practice has barely declined.
▪ Last year's prodigy, in sharp contrast, endured the most miserable day of his short and spectacular formula one career.
▪ Cactus-covered buttes stand in sharp contrast to the blue water, making this an idyllic spot for a getaway.
▪ Her simple, dusty clothes made a sharp contrast with the rich fabrics around her.
▪ That was in sharp contrast to a 6. 5 % decline for all of 1994.
▪ Such sharp contrasts are partly the consequence of inequalities of income earlier in life.
▪ Either would be in sharp contrast to pre-settlement times, when pines represented 90 percent of the forest.
crack
▪ Sometimes a sharp crack and something falling into darkness.
▪ The umbrella fell to the floor with a sharp crack of the ferrule on the tile.
▪ We're used to the sharp cracks of lightning and the belch of thunder issuing from the belly of the sky.
▪ The bomb detonated with a sharp crack, sending tiny but razor-sharp pieces of metal into the backs of the gun crews.
▪ I was telling myself that it would soon be over when I heard a sharp crack.
▪ Her head hit the concrete with a sharp crack.
▪ The sharp crack of the pistol always brought her awake, cold and shivering.
▪ Off in the distance, sharp cracks of gunfire and the occasional dull blast of dynamite interrupted the rural drumming.
criticism
▪ Hart has attracted some sharp criticism, especially from Otago and southern parts of the South Island.
▪ That measure drew sharp criticism from Gov.
▪ The sharpest criticism levelled was that the collection amounted to little more than a reshuffling.
▪ But while Mr Mitterrand won praise and respect abroad, he often drew sharp criticism at home, especially from conservative commentators.
decline
▪ During Ellis's tenure at Kurunagala cattle stealing went into a sharp decline, but as soon as he left the district it revived.
▪ The sharpest decline, 7 percent, was among children aged 10-14, according to the Justice Department figures released Thursday.
▪ This led to an especially sharp decline during the 1960s, from over half a million to well under 300,000.
▪ February gasoline suffered a sharper decline, down 1. 83 cents at 58. 65 cents a gallon.
▪ But the sharp decline in peasant disturbances in the pre-war years pointed to peaceful development.
▪ In the 1720s the use of walnut went into sharp decline and it was replaced by mahogany.
▪ The evidence pointed to a sharp decline in guerrilla prowess.
▪ In the upland region an old-established pastoral economy and the local industry that supported it was in sharp decline.
difference
▪ Miss Diane died of a brain haemorrhage after a sharp difference of opinion with the producer about salary.
▪ One person familiar with their work said there have been some sharp differences of thinking between the male and female members.
▪ Undoubtedly it was the sharp difference in personalities that first prompted talk that Nicky was not the man for the throne.
▪ Both sides will argue vehemently that there are sharp differences between the parties, and there are.
▪ None the less, the sharp differences in survival curves between the three comorbidity groups indicate that this simple categorisation was valid.
▪ The sharpest difference between the two is seen in their views of the role of language in intellectual development.
▪ There has been a sharp difference over what its price tag should look like.
▪ Teachers' status and length of teaching experience are also associated with sharp differences in the attitudes represented by this factor.
distinction
▪ All sports came to make sharp distinctions between those who received payment and those who did not.
▪ A sharp distinction between soma and germ line makes it possible to prevent acquired characters from being transmitted.
▪ The proliferation of retention of title clauses requires a sharp distinction to be drawn between contracts of sale and agency.
▪ There is no sharp distinction between the later stages of transition and the earlier ones of turbulent motion.
▪ Behaviouralists drew a sharp distinction between normative and scientific statements, and made it the hallmark of science to avoid the normative.
drop
▪ A sharp drop in population coupled with forest regeneration in the Basin of Pátzcuaro may have significantly reduced erosion.
▪ One reason: a sharp drop in the number of undergraduate students choosing economics as a major.
▪ The resulting sharp drop in its levels causes the lining of the womb, along with the unfertilised egg, to be shed.
▪ The decline was in part due to a sharp drop in gasoline prices.
▪ Far better to await a further sharp drop in mortgage rates into the high or even middling single digits.
▪ Last year, a sharp drop in interest rates boosted the value of a 30-year Treasury bond by more than 30 percent.
▪ Cuts in salaries, bonuses and overtime payments have reduced many family-incomes and caused a sharp drop in consumer spending.
▪ Nevertheless, he said the sharp drop in the book-to-bill came as a surprise.
edge
▪ Again do not round over the sharp edges when sanding.
▪ Every aspect of my real estate practice presents sharp edges, you see.
▪ I also learned not to step on the shiny ones and that red pebbles usually have sharp edges on top.
▪ There are no sharp edges and nothing rough.
▪ She felt the sharp edge of his teeth trying to force her lips apart and tasted blood.
▪ I could see the metal barrel of a pistol, or the sharp edge of an army knife.
▪ It needed a really sharp edge and just a light brushing with the cutter to form some of these parts.
▪ The wound is of linear character with sharp edges.
end
▪ And all of this is inevitable, for Utopians are ill at ease at the sharp end of politics.
▪ The effect of these changes will be far-reaching and transport will, in many respects, be at the sharp end.
▪ All three came from the Midlands and had been at the sharp end of the business as salesmen for distribution companies.
▪ Meadowlark-his first name is used just once-finds himself at the sharp end of all of the culture shock.
▪ Our aim is to ensure that we become more efficient and enhance the effectiveness of our sharp end research.
▪ This was the commission's first visit to meet people at the sharp end of the system.
▪ They were at the sharp end of an operation conceived at the Oxford based company Unipart.
▪ I wanted to invite Virginia back to the unit to show her what these rationalisations will really mean at the sharp end.
eye
▪ Their sharp eyes select the lowest part of the lip of the fall.
▪ As a teen-ager, I kept a sharp eye on who was winning the prizes I wanted: Honor Roll.
▪ She is the insider with the sharp eye of an outsider.
▪ And it is for that reason he admonishes his crew to keep a sharp eye for whales.
▪ She was a small, tough girl - determined, opinionated, with light brown hair and quick, sharp eyes.
▪ I keep a sharp eye on him.
▪ And she had rarely met anyone with a sharper eye, or a truer judgement on people.
▪ You, old sharp eyes, are going to collect at 40-1.
fall
▪ An inadequate person in a job can lead to a sharp fall in morale or sales.
▪ The first and most striking thing about these figures is the sharp fall which they show.
▪ And unemployment generally brings a sharp fall in income.
▪ There has been a sharp fall in the number of reported rapes involving strangers; these account for 12 % of attacks.
▪ As a result we have seen a sharp fall in the numbers who sleep rough on our streets.
▪ This period has seen a sharp fall in the average rate of growth as compared to the earlier post-war experience.
▪ However, in April there were further sharp falls in the price of shares and the value of the yen.
▪ However, a sharp fall in the dollar would be awkward for the Fed.
focus
▪ That puts the importance of the order in sharp focus.
▪ At most ski resorts, large and small, there has been a sharper focus on day-care facilities and staff.
▪ The banning of the annual sea dump brought the issue of nuclear waste disposal into even sharper focus.
▪ Programs designed to motivate patients into leaving voluntarily brought into sharp focus conflicting institutional dynamics inherent in the leprosarium setting.
▪ In recent years this has been brought into sharp focus with growing public concern for a healthier and safer environment.
▪ Everything was in sharp focus, the horizon was a clear line dividing sea and sky; more rain about.
▪ Fast Forward Advanced At this level, there is a much sharper focus on authentic listening and speaking.
▪ Until now, long-sighted people have to wear glasses or contact lenses to see the world in sharp focus.
glance
▪ Lessingham gave him one sharp glance.
▪ He took in her formal outfit and the case in her hand with one sharp glance.
▪ She halted half way across the carpet, and was aware of his sharp glance going over her bespectacled face and shapeless suit.
▪ She felt her toes curl, but couldn't help giving him a sharp glance.
increase
▪ Book illustration is a field marked by sharp increases in price over the last two decades.
▪ Individual communities saw their own sharp increases in adult cases, with devastating results.
▪ By 1948 another sharp increase to 19,765 had occurred, with the average daily population exceeding 20,000 in July of that year.
▪ The sharpest increases were in California and New York, the group said.
▪ As motorists have found to their cost, the result has been a sharp increase in petrol prices at the pump.
▪ The policy shift was triggered by a sharp increase in violent crimes committed by young offenders during the late 1980s.
▪ The decay of Britain's roads has been reflected in a sharp increase in central government's spending on road maintenance.
▪ About 14 percent of the civilian population is enrolled in Medicaid, a sharp increase from 10 percent in 1990.
knife
▪ One uncle starts a discussion of whether a stick and sharp knife is better than scissors.
▪ Use the sharp knife to cut off the crusts.
▪ Scrape a large sharp knife across the surface, shaving off rolls of very fine chocolate.
▪ Using a sharp knife, remove all of the white pith, which is quite bitter.
▪ You know this because you have prodded one of the pieces with the tip of a sharp knife.
▪ Remove the skin by scraping with a sharp knife.
▪ Here a handful of pages had been removed with scissors or a sharp knife.
▪ That night she must hide a sharp knife and a lamp near her bed.
look
▪ But despite its sharp looks, underneath the Herald was seriously dated, even in 1959.
▪ He gave her a sharp look, but said nothing.
▪ Out on the flats there is nothing to hide behind and the birds must keep a sharp look out for trouble.
▪ Or kept a sharper look out for the paparazzi.
pain
▪ It was more than a headache; it was like a sharp pain right through the brain.
▪ A loud buzz erupted above his head, and sharp pains tore at his cheeks and scalp.
▪ A sharp pain twisted in Theda's guts.
▪ The former Scarborough player felt a sharp pain in a knee against Scunthorpe United.
▪ And suddenly a sharp pain as if stabbed in the gut.
▪ Then one day at school I got a sharp pain in my stomach.
▪ Irritating, pricking, stitching sharp pain in the point of the fracture.
▪ When she went to fetch the water she felt sharp pains rushing through her body.
practice
▪ In it he mentions several examples of sharp practice in the laboratory, one or two of which are new to me.
▪ At times these adjustments verge on sharp practice enabled by the fact that ingredients do not have to be revealed.
▪ Any kind of sharp practice or dishonest dealing will infallibly ruin his career.
▪ But trams also had to face some sharp practice from competing bus companies.
▪ Recognising sharp practice in their dealers from the outset, they would be less likely to blame them for huge losses.
reduction
▪ The reason for the sharp reduction is more security doors, screens, lighting, and alarms.
▪ The result has been a saving on energy of Aus$90,000 a year and a sharp reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide..
▪ Mr. Heathcoat-Amory Yes, the sharpest reduction in disconnections for debt has occurred since the companies were put into the private sector.
▪ However, other observers attributed the sharp reduction in rainfall to the accelerated destruction of tropical forests.
▪ One of the consequences of the 1988 drought was a sharp reduction in the set-aside programme.
▪ That's led to a sharp reduction in the volume of other rubbish that's collected in the normal way.
relief
▪ The clarity of light throws everything into sharp relief against a backdrop of clear blue sky.
▪ Such excellence threw the next hour into even sharper relief with two sides growing increasingly scrappy.
▪ The dark sky had forced an eerie light on to the buildings, causing colours to jump out in sharp relief.
▪ A further trick of the light throws their roller-coaster ridge into sharp relief, like a cardboard cut-out.
▪ Miles used his connection with the starpod to dim the chamber lights, and the stars sprang into sharp relief.
▪ The above brief account throws into sharp relief the essential differences between the Keynesian and classical theories of labour market adjustment.
▪ The literature throws into sharp relief the essential dichotomy in the approach to this issue between economics and economic history.
▪ Moreover, although these issues were thrown into sharp relief during the Thatcher administrations, Labour governments had been hardly more liberal.
right
▪ For this you turn sharp right off the road from Saint-Jean to Saint-Palais, about half-way between those two towns.
▪ Pass over a broken wall and turn sharp right.
▪ The track emerges on to a forestry lane, taking a sharp right and continuing on the lane.
▪ I went up the stairs, turned sharp right and there were another eight stairs.
▪ At the three stone cairns turn sharp right and head downhill to the edge of the forest.
▪ Walk along the road until you come to Overton Hall Farm where you bear sharp right down bend in track.
rise
▪ A further important consequence was the more rapid implementation of planned petrochemical projects in response to sharp rises in oil production and oil prices.
▪ The sharpest rise in shop sales for almost 12 years encouraged hopes that the worst of the recession is over.
▪ However, its wholesale introduction would mean a sharp rise in prices.
▪ The immediate effect was a sharp rise in prices, but inflation then came under control.
▪ They have coincided with a sharp rise in refugees taking advantage of liberal asylum laws.
▪ There, a sharp rise in interest rates popped the market's speculative bubble.
▪ Rise in long-term unemployment There's been a sharp rise in the number of people out of work for more than a year.
▪ The charges for prescriptions have seen the sharpest rise - an increase of no less than 1,425 percent between 1979 and 1990.
tongue
▪ Only that you have a sharp tongue and an undisciplined sister, neither of which attributes I find endearing.
▪ Oh, she has the sharpest tongue!
▪ She was still slightly in awe of Violette, her worldliness, her sharp tongue.
▪ How I try to punish my parents with my sharp tongue.
▪ They opened their mouths to show her sharp tongues and teeth, ready to bite, gobble her up.
▪ If Toyah cuts that easily she'd better watch herself on Linda's sharp tongue.
▪ Nobody but nobody commented on Maggie's shapely form - not unless they wanted acid dripping on them from that sharp tongue.
▪ The men are white-haired and silent, the women dark-haired with sharp tongues.
tooth
▪ A vast pink tongue was hanging out of the creature's mouth between a pair of the longest, sharpest teeth imaginable.
▪ Combat Bonus A charging war boar is a bad-tempered mound of bloody-minded muscle and bone with pointy tusks and sharp teeth.
▪ My sharp teeth sink themselves into its nose.
▪ Tom's work mostly involves checking for sharp teeth and rasping them smooth.
▪ It has relatively large eyes and a small mouth, with small sharp teeth on both upper and lower jaws.
▪ Unlike most dinosaurs it had sharp teeth with which it ate smaller creatures.
▪ Piglets are born with sharp teeth.
▪ It opened its mouth, growling deep in its throat in a display of wickedly sharp teeth.
turn
▪ A sharp turn to the south east took us past St Ives, and up a massive sand-filled estuary towards Hayle.
▪ The road made a last sharp turn and ran straight west along the shoreline into Angle Inlet.
▪ However her outspoken opinions mask an iron determination matched by a formidable charm and sharp turn of phrase.
▪ After a sharp turn in the path, they are suddenly approaching a faint square of light.
▪ Their wings do not normally come into contact, but even so there are problems when the dragonfly executes sharp turns.
▪ His feet and hands kept striking stone corners, sharp turns, and massive columns difficult to circumvent.
▪ Another sharp turn sent them soaring out of a tunnel mouth in the side of a vast cavern.
▪ Ro and Brent do the carrying, negotiating sharp turns in the stairwell.
wit
▪ Ice creams and lollies seem to benefit from the sharp wit of its frosting.
▪ Revealing his conclusion would spoil the fun because Hitt tells his story with a deft touch and a sharp wit.
▪ The blood in my veins ran high and my usually sharp wits dulled.
▪ Lapworth was retiring, generous, especially to his students, and sincere, though he had a sharp wit.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
not the sharpest tool in the box/shed
sharp tongue
▪ How I try to punish my parents with my sharp tongue.
▪ If Toyah cuts that easily she'd better watch herself on Linda's sharp tongue.
▪ Nobody but nobody commented on Maggie's shapely form - not unless they wanted acid dripping on them from that sharp tongue.
▪ Oh, she has the sharpest tongue!
▪ Only that you have a sharp tongue and an undisciplined sister, neither of which attributes I find endearing.
▪ She was still slightly in awe of Violette, her worldliness, her sharp tongue.
▪ The men are white-haired and silent, the women dark-haired with sharp tongues.
▪ They opened their mouths to show her sharp tongues and teeth, ready to bite, gobble her up.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ "Clear, sharp photos every time," the advertisement promised.
▪ sharp Cheddar cheese
▪ a sharp rise in prices
▪ a sharp young attorney
▪ Be careful. That knife's very sharp.
▪ Hey, you look sharp. Where'd you get the suit?
▪ I like this marmalade. It's very sharp.
▪ lawyers in sharp suits
▪ Lichtenstein's paintings are full of colours and sharp outlines - almost like children's comics.
▪ Mia has a sharp nose and very dark eyes.
▪ Paula's a very sharp dresser, so I always have her go shopping with me.
▪ Peel the apples using a sharp knife.
▪ Puppies mean to be playful, but their sharp teeth can give you a nasty bite.
▪ The drink had a very sharp lemony taste.
▪ The lemon juice gives the dressing its sharp flavour.
▪ The wind blew across the lake in sharp gusts.
▪ There's no point lying to her - she's much too sharp.
▪ There is not always a sharp distinction between murder and manslaughter.
▪ This TV set gives you a very sharp picture.
▪ Those lawyers are razor sharp, and you've got to be careful about every single word you say.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ A very sharp increase might have persuaded some Fed officials to push for higher rates to restrain inflation.
▪ After a sharp turn in the path, they are suddenly approaching a faint square of light.
▪ Colours were brighter, but less sharp.
▪ Her skin is wrinkled, her face cruel and knowing, her fingers bony and sharp.
▪ That puts the importance of the order in sharp focus.
▪ The chill in the air caught me by surprise, a sharp mountain night breeze.
▪ The clarity of light throws everything into sharp relief against a backdrop of clear blue sky.
▪ The current offensive has provoked a sharp recession, with investment, construction, travel and commerce suffering badly.
II.adverb
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ VERB
look
▪ Although the costumes look sharp, the set is bare-bones and nondescript.
▪ Hobert looked sharp, completing 10 of 13 passes.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ The performance starts at 8 o'clock sharp.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Sharp

Sharp \Sharp\, a. [Compar. Sharper; superl. Sharpest.] [OE. sharp, scharp, scarp, AS. scearp; akin to OS. skarp, LG. scharp, D. scherp, G. scharf, Dan. & Sw. skarp, Icel. skarpr. Cf. Escarp, Scrape, Scorpion.]

  1. Having a very thin edge or fine point; of a nature to cut or pierce easily; not blunt or dull; keen.

    He dies upon my scimeter's sharp point.
    --Shak.

  2. Terminating in a point or edge; not obtuse or rounded; somewhat pointed or edged; peaked or ridged; as, a sharp hill; sharp features.

  3. Affecting the sense as if pointed or cutting, keen, penetrating, acute: to the taste or smell, pungent, acid, sour, as ammonia has a sharp taste and odor; to the hearing, piercing, shrill, as a sharp sound or voice; to the eye, instantaneously brilliant, dazzling, as a sharp flash.

  4. (Mus.)

    1. High in pitch; acute; as, a sharp note or tone.

    2. Raised a semitone in pitch; as, C sharp (C[sharp]), which is a half step, or semitone, higher than C.

    3. So high as to be out of tune, or above true pitch; as, the tone is sharp; that instrument is sharp. Opposed in all these senses to flat.

  5. Very trying to the feelings; piercing; keen; severe; painful; distressing; as, sharp pain, weather; a sharp and frosty air.

    Sharp misery had worn him to the bones.
    --Shak.

    The morning sharp and clear.
    --Cowper.

    In sharpest perils faithful proved.
    --Keble.

  6. Cutting in language or import; biting; sarcastic; cruel; harsh; rigorous; severe; as, a sharp rebuke. ``That sharp look.''
    --Tennyson.

    To that place the sharp Athenian law Can not pursue us.
    --Shak.

    Be thy words severe, Sharp as merits but the sword forbear.
    --Dryden.

  7. Of keen perception; quick to discern or distinguish; having nice discrimination; acute; penetrating; sagacious; clever; as, a sharp eye; sharp sight, hearing, or judgment.

    Nothing makes men sharper . . . than want.
    --Addison.

    Many other things belong to the material world, wherein the sharpest philosophers have never ye? arrived at clear and distinct ideas.
    --L. Watts.

  8. Eager in pursuit; keen in quest; impatient for gratification; keen; as, a sharp appetite.

  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.

    Note: 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 \Sharp\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sharped; p. pr. & vb. n. Sharping.]

  1. To sharpen. [Obs.]
    --Spenser.

  2. (Mus.) To raise above the proper pitch; to elevate the tone of; especially, to raise a half step, or semitone, above the natural tone.

Sharp

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 \Sharp\, v. i.

  1. To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper.
    --L'Estrange.

  2. (Mus.) To sing above the proper pitch.

Sharp

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.)

    1. 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.

    2. 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]

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
sharp

"a cheat at games," 1797, short for sharper (1680s) in this sense. Meaning "expert, connoisseur" is attested from 1840, and likely is from sharp (adj.). Music sense is from 1570s. The noun was used 14c. as "a sharp weapon, edge of a sword."

sharp

Old English scearp "having a cutting edge; pointed; intellectually acute, active, shrewd; keen (of senses); severe; biting, bitter (of tastes)," from Proto-Germanic *skarpaz, literally "cutting" (cognates: Old Saxon scarp, Old Norse skarpr, Old Frisian skerp, Dutch scherp, German scharf "sharp"), from PIE *(s)ker- (1) "to cut" (cognates: Lettish skarbs "sharp," Middle Irish cerb "cutting;" see shear (v.)).\n

\nThe figurative meaning "acute or penetrating in intellect or perception" was in Old English; hence "keenly alive to one's own interests, quick to take advantage" (1690s). Of words or talk, "cutting, sarcastic," from early 13c. Meaning "distinct in contour" is from 1670s. The adverbial meaning "abruptly" is from 1836; that of "promptly" is first attested 1840. The musical meaning "half step above (a given tone)" is from 1570s. Meaning "stylish" is from 1944, hepster slang, from earlier general slang sense of "excellent" (1940). Phrase sharp as a tack first recorded 1912 (sharp as a needle has been around since Old English). Sharp-shinned attested from 1704 of persons, 1813 of hawks.

Wiktionary
sharp

  1. 1 Able to cut easily. 2 (lb en colloquial) intelligent. adv. 1 To a point or edge; piercingly; eagerly; sharply. 2 (context notcomp English) exactly. 3 (context music English) In a higher pitch than is correct or desirable. n. 1 (context music English) The symbol ♯, placed after the name of a note in the key signature or before a note on the staff to indicate that the note is to be played a semitone higher. 2 (context music English) A note that is played a semitone higher than usual; denoted by the name of the note that is followed by the symbol ♯. 3 (context music English) A note that is sharp in a particular key. 4 (context music English) The scale having a particular sharp note as its tonic. 5 (context usually in the plural English) Something that is sharp. 6 A sharp tool or weapon. 7 (context medicine English) A hypodermic syringe. 8 (context medicine dated English) A scalpel or other edged instrument used in surgery. 9 A dishonest person; a cheater. 10 Part of a stream where the water runs very rapidly. 11 A sewing needle with a very slender point, more pointed than a blunt or a between. 12 (context in the plural English) middlings 13 (context slang dated English) An expert. 14 A sharpie (member of Australian gangs of the 1960s and 1970s). v

  2. 1 (context music English) To raise the pitch of a note half a step making a natural note a sharp. 2 To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper.

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WordNet
sharp

  1. n. a musical notation indicating one half step higher than the note named

  2. a long thin sewing needle with a sharp point

sharp

adv. changing suddenly in direction and degree; "the road twists sharply after the light"; "turn sharp left here" [syn: sharply]

sharp

  1. adj. (of something seen or heard) clearly defined; "a sharp photographic image"; "the sharp crack of a twig"; "the crisp snap of dry leaves underfoot" [syn: crisp]

  2. ending in a sharp point [syn: acuate, acute, needlelike]

  3. having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions; "an acute observer of politics and politicians"; "incisive comments"; "icy knifelike reasoning"; "as sharp and incisive as the stroke of a fang"; "penetrating insight"; "frequent penetrative observations" [syn: acute, discriminating, incisive, keen, knifelike, penetrating, penetrative, piercing]

  4. marked by practical hardheaded intelligence; "a smart businessman"; "an astute tenant always reads the small print in a lease"; "he was too shrewd to go along with them on a road that could lead only to their overthrow" [syn: astute, shrewd]

  5. harsh; "sharp criticism"; "a sharp-worded exchange"; "a tart remark" [syn: sharp-worded, tart]

  6. high-pitched and sharp; "piercing screams"; "a shrill whistle" [syn: piercing, shrill]

  7. extremely steep; "an abrupt canyon"; "the precipitous rapids of the upper river"; "the precipitous hills of Chinese paintings"; "a sharp drop" [syn: abrupt, precipitous]

  8. keenly and painfully felt; as if caused by a sharp edge or point; "a sharp pain"; "sharp winds" [ant: dull]

  9. very penetrating and clear and sharp in operation; "an incisive mind"; "a keen intelligence"; "of sharp and active intellect" [syn: incisive, keen]

  10. having or made by a thin edge or sharp point; suitable for cutting or piercing; "a sharp knife"; "a pencil with a sharp point" [ant: dull]

  11. sour or bitter in taste [syn: acerb, acerbic, astringent]

  12. raised in pitch by one chromatic semitone; "C sharp" [ant: flat, natural]

  13. very sudden and in great amount or degree; "a sharp drop in the stock market"

  14. quick and forceful; "a sharp blow"

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Gazetteer
Sharp -- U.S. County in Arkansas
Population (2000): 17119
Housing Units (2000): 9342
Land area (2000): 604.353312 sq. miles (1565.267826 sq. km)
Water area (2000): 1.991812 sq. miles (5.158769 sq. km)
Total area (2000): 606.345124 sq. miles (1570.426595 sq. km)
Located within: Arkansas (AR), FIPS 05
Location: 36.190062 N, 91.498459 W
Headwords:
Sharp
Sharp, AR
Sharp County
Sharp County, AR
Wikipedia
Sharp (crater)

Sharp is a lunar impact crater located to the west of the Sinus Iridum bay of the Mare Imbrium, beyond the Montes Jura range. To the southwest is the crater Mairan. Because of its location and foreshortening, Sharp appears elliptical whereas the crater rim is actually circular.

Sharp is surrounded by a rugged region of mounts and rises. Ridges are joined to the north and south ends of the rim. The crater has a low central peak at the midpoint of the floor. Between Sharp and Sharp A is an unnamed sinuous rille. The more distant Rima Sharp is located on the Mare Frigoris to the northwest.

Sharp (band)

Sharp were a mid-1980s English rock band, featuring former Jam members Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released one single.

Sharp (surname)

Sharp is a surname. It is cognate to the German . It is also akin to words which have the sense of scraping, e.g. Latin 'ditch', Russian 'to scrape'.

Sharp (flour)

' Sharp' flour is made from hard wheat. It is a term used by millers in Fiji and is in common usage throughout the populace as evidenced by newspaper reports whenever the price of flour changes, with the new price of sharp listed. Sharp is used as an ingredient for roti in Fiji.

Sharp (magazine)

SHARP is a Canadian men's lifestyle magazine published by Contempo Media Inc., a Canadian media, publishing, and content company. SHARP was launched in 2008 and is published eight times per year. Six regular issues and two "SHARP: The Book for Men" special editions targeting premium and luxury consumers. The headquarters is in Toronto.

SHARP's content includes fashion, travel, electronics, automobiles, food, alcohol, advice and essays of international scope but Canadian perspective.

Sharp (music)

In music, sharp, dièse (from French), or diesis (from Greek) means higher in pitch. More specifically, in musical notation, sharp means "higher in pitch by a semitone (half step)," and has an associated sharp symbol, , which may be found in key signatures or as an accidental. Sharp is contrasted with flat, which refers to a lowering of pitch. Intonation may be flat, sharp, or both, successively or simultaneously.

Under twelve-tone equal temperament, B sharp, for instance, sounds the same as, or is enharmonically equivalent to, C natural, and E sharp is enharmonically equivalent to F natural. In other tuning systems, such enharmonic equivalences in general do not exist. To allow extended just intonation, composer Ben Johnston uses a sharp to indicate a note is raised 70.6 cents (ratio 25:24), or a flat to indicate a note is lowered 70.6 cents.

In tuning, sharp can also mean "slightly higher in pitch" (by some unspecified amount). If two simultaneous notes are slightly out of tune, the higher-pitched one (assuming the lower one is properly pitched) is said to be sharp with respect to the other. Furthermore, the verb sharpen means "raise the frequency of a note, typically by a small musical interval".

Double sharps also exist; these are denoted by the symbol and raise a note by two semitones, or one whole tone. They should not be confused with a ghost note. Less often (in for instance microtonal music notation) one will encounter half, or three-quarter, or otherwise modified, sharps. A half sharp indicates the use of quarter tones, and may be marked with various symbols including .

Although very uncommon, a triple sharp can sometimes be found. It raises a note by three semitones.

Sharp

Sharp or SHARP may refer to:

  • Sharp (surname)
  • Sharp (flour), a flour made from hard wheat
  • Sharp (magazine), Canadian magazine
  • Sharp Daily, a free newspaper published in Taiwan and Hong Kong
  • SHARP (helmet ratings), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme
  • Sharp (set theory)
  • Sharp (crater), a lunar impact crater
  • Sharp, a type of sewing needle
  • Sharp Scale, measure of paper opacity
  • Sharp (also spelled shark, sharper or sharker), a swindler at games of chance and skill, e.g. card sharp, pool shark
Sharp (South Korean band)

Sharp (stylized as S♯arp) was a South Korean pop music vocal group in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The group consisted of Chris Kim, Jang Seok-hyun, Seo Ji-young and Lee Ji-hye. A male original member, John Kim ( UPTOWN, Slow-Jam) quit the group after the first album. They released five albums before breaking up. Their last album was "S♯arp Vol. 5 - StYlE." S#arp was a very successful group that won many 1st places on k-pop charts with songs like "Sweety", "", "", and others.

The group's breakup was attributed to the inability of the female singers to work together. This was largely due to Seo Ji-young bullying Lee Ji-hye to the point that the company was forced to disband the group. Lee Ji-hye was badly bullied by Seo Ji-young who had the other members bully Lee Ji-Hye as well. After the breakup, a greatest hits album was released on January 24, 2003.

Since the breakup, Seo Ji-young has released two solo albums entitled Listen to My Heart and Different This Time. Lee Ji-hye released a solo album entitled Without You and a special single with the lead song "Love Me Love Me". Chris Kim also released a solo album entitled Christopher. Jang Seok-hyun is yet to release a solo album but the public was startled by his weight loss, which is said to be 30 kg. He later admitted that he lost weight in order to debut as an actor. Unfortunately, the victim, Lee Ji-hye has not been as successful of a career post disbandment.

Sharp (Etnica album)

Sharp is an album by the Italian group Etnica released in 2004.

Sharp (Angela Winbush album)

Sharp is the debut studio album by American R&B singer Angela Winbush, after she left the duo Rene & Angela. The album was released in 1987 and peaked at #7 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart; the album also peaked at #81 on the Billboard 200. The album spawned four singles which were all commercially successful on the Billboard R&B singles chart, including the album's lead single " Angel" which peaked at #1 on the R&B Singles charts.

On the vinyl pressing, tracks 1–5 were known as the "Slammin' Side", while tracks 6–9 were known as the " Quiet Storm Side".

The album, as well as the single "Angel", were nominated for a Soul Train Music Award in 1988.

SHARP (helmet ratings)

SHARP (the Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme) is a British government quality ratings scheme for motorcycle helmets, established in 2007.

SHARP tests shop-bought helmets, seven for each model, using 32 tests which aim to measure the protection they offer the brain in impacts at a variety of speeds and against both flat surfaces and kerbs. It rates the helmet models from one to five stars, and states that a five star helmet "offers good levels of protection right around the helmet."

Nigel Mills of the University of Birmingham criticised the SHARP scheme in a paper in 2009, examining its testing of rotational acceleration, despite SHARP using the test procedures specified in British Standard 6658 and also the UN ECE (United Nations) Regulation 22.

The UK's Transport Research Laboratory delivered a detailed response addressing the Nigel Mills paper in November 2009. Technical response to Nigel Mills paper

SHARP has been given two prestigious road safety awards; the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award (2013, Motorcycle category) in recognition of its outstanding contribution to improving road safety and the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) annual Road Safety Award recognising achievements in helping motorcyclists.

Some retailers of helmets use SHARP star ratings as a selection criterion.

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Usage examples of "sharp".

Esterases in the body break the drug down rapidly into acetylcholine, so it is also likely to be undetectable, unless the target happens to croak right outside a primo medical center with a very sharp pathologist who is looking for something out of the ordinary.

I saw the good sense of his advice, and determined to shew that I was as sharp as he.

Having stilled its immemorial allocution to the moon, the watch-dog was assisting a negro who, prefixing a team of mules to the plow, was flatting and sharping contentedly at his task.

That, perhaps, would be learned by heart and reproduced elsewhere underground, imperfect memory blurring the sharp elegance but perhaps not wholly losing that name, in some allomorph or other.

In all their angularity they reminded him of how frail the human body is against all that is sharp and hard.

Straight at Ged in the small rocking boat he came, opening his long, toothed jaws as he slid down arrowy from the air: so that all Ged had to do was bind his wings and limbs stiff with one sharp spell and send him thus hurtling aside into the sea like a stone falling.

Garner bested him by two or three inches in height, but their shoulders were of equal width and, in profile, their noses had the same straight slope and sharp tip and the same arrogantly flared nostrils.

I have seen the goats on Mount Pentelicus scatter at the approach of a stranger, climb to the sharp points of projecting rocks, and attitudinize in the most self-conscious manner, striking at once those picturesque postures against the sky with which Oriental pictures have made us and them familiar.

From its sharp hairpins you can see the Mediterranean on a fine day, or at least the shiny new autoroute that swings inland at Cannes and goes past Aix and Avignon.

John Sharp, the balloonist, whom you rescued from Lake Carlopa, and who helped you build the Red Cloud?

Sharp relieved Tom at the wheel, while the young inventor ate, and then, with the airship heading southwest, the speed was increased a trifle, the balloonist desiring to see what the motor could accomplish under a heavy load.

He strode towards Alyssa, intent on avenging his comrade, but as he did so his blade flew out to the side and caught Barca a sharp blow on his kneecap.

There was a sharp light in her blue eyes, and a bared dagger in her hand.

The barghest recognized the explosive rage in this drow and had felt the sharp bite of the scimitar.

Adica could see the war waged within him: his jealousy, his sharp temper, his pride and self-satisfaction battling with the basic decency common to the White Deer people, who knew that in living together one had to cooperate to survive.