crack wise

English

Verb

crack wise (third-person singular simple present cracks wise, present participle cracking wise, simple past and past participle cracked wise)

1. (intransitive) To make a sarcastic, flippant, or sardonic comment.

   Synonym: wisecrack (verb)

   • 1917, George Bronson-Howard, Slaves of the Lamp:

     "Whenever I commit a crime?" expostulated Paul. "Where do you get that stuff, Ferret?" / "Out of me nut, kiddo. Why don't you stop cracking wise, and go back to the ribbon counter?"

   • 1985 August 5, Jacob V. Lamar Jr., “Coming Along Just Fine”, in Time:

     Reagan displayed his usual aplomb and even cracked wise about his age at a White House banquet.

Related terms

• wiseacre, wiseass, wisecracker, wiseguy (agents who crack wise); see also Thesaurus:know-it-all

References

• “crack wise”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• wisecrack