How to use smattering in a sentence

15 example sentences · noun

Smattering means a shallow or superficial knowledge of a subject. Example: “She knows a smattering of Greek, but not enough to carry on a conversation.”

Examples of smattering by meaning

nounA shallow or superficial knowledge of a subject.

She knows a smattering of Greek, but not enough to carry on a conversation.
It's easy enough to be a beak when you're young and athletic, and can offer the latest University smattering.1907 April, E[dward] M[organ] Forster, The Longest Journey, Edinburgh; London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC
Tarzan, who, by this time, with the assistance of Abdul, had picked up quite a smattering of Arab, questioned one of the younger men who had accompanied the sheik while the latter paid his respects to Captain Gerard.1913 June–December, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Numa ‘El Adrea’”, in The Return of Tarzan, New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt Company, […]...

nounA small amount or number of something.

There’s only a smattering of people who oppose the first amendment.
More sophisticated dishes, like trout, with a heavy smattering of finely minced rosemary between the filets, are simple and au naturel: the trout comes with a lemon wedge, a bed of mixed greens, and the head.2004 April 12, Dana Goodyear, “Westville”, in The New Yorker, New York, N.Y.: Condé Nast Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC
He was introduced to a smattering of boos from the crowd, a sign of the presence of fans from Notre Dame and other Big Ten schools.2016 November 1, Teddy Greenstein, “Jim Harbaugh rates Wrigley Field atmosphere 'A+++'”, in Chicago Tribune

More sentences with smattering

A smattering are just AG enthusiasts showing off their collections.2012 December 23, Dodai Stewart, “The Weird and Amazing World of American Girl Doll Music Videos”, in Jezebel, archived from the original…. From the entry ag
Would Minister Jowell propose that, for balance, magazines offer a smattering of models with spots, crow’s feet or jowls?2000 April 12, Meghan Cox Gurdon, “Teen mags are only skin deep: Adolescent girls don’t need the state to censor images of lithe models”…. From the entry plumpitude
It’s easy enough to be a beak when you’re young and athletic, and can offer the latest University smattering.1907, E.M. Forster, The Longest Journey, Part II, XX [Uniform ed., p. 201]. From the entry beak
Rocky has a smattering of attractions but is best seen as the gateway to the coastal gems of Yeppoon and Great Keppel Island.2008, Alan Murphy, Justin Flynn, Olivia Pozzan, Paul Harding, Queensland & the Great Barrier Reef, Lonely Planet, page 234. From the entry rocky
There was a respectable smattering of Italians, a few Poles and Germans, one Serbo-Croatian, and an Englishman named Bill Bishop, whose sidekick I became.2003, Paul E. Dinter, The Other Side of the Altar: One Man’s Life in the Catholic Priesthood, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN. From the entry Serbo-Croatian
For a "soft R" like "Four Weddings and a Funeral," which features a smattering of profanity, a theater might check identifications only lightly.1996 February 18, Trip Gabriel, “The Ratings Game At the Cineplex”, in The New York Times, page Section 2, Page 1. From the entry hard r
The number to respond might not reach critical mass—in which case all you'd get is a smattering of critics, kibitzers, and loudmouths, doing more harm than good.2012, David Brin, Existence, London: Orbit Books, →ISBN, page 162. From the entry smart mob
It was begrieving to see how the intrusion of even a smattering of pride and moral standards could impede on what had always been a carefree, shiftless life.1996, Cameron Judd, Passage to Natchez, page 229. From the entry begrieve
During the whole of the previous night Clarry heard her creaking with poignant, uneasy awareness; sleeping on her deck, he had gained a smattering of her timbery language.1957, Simon Kent [pseudonym; Max Catto], Ferry to Hongkong, London: Hutchinson, page 119. From the entry timbery

Meaning of smattering

noun A shallow or superficial knowledge of a subject.
noun A small amount or number of something.

Full definition of smattering

Questions about smattering in a sentence

How do you use smattering in a sentence?: Smattering is used as a noun. For example: “She knows a smattering of Greek, but not enough to carry on a conversation.”
What is a short sentence with smattering?: “A smattering are just AG enthusiasts showing off their collections.”
What does smattering mean?: Smattering means a shallow or superficial knowledge of a subject.

Adapted from Wiktionary: smattering (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use smattering in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/smattering. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.