Why Is Smart a Problem?

Smart was one of the words pinpointed when I asked fellow writers, “What word(s) do you repeat too often in writing and/or dialogue?”

I wasn’t smart enough to pinpoint smart as a potential problem, but I responded to the feedback, cracked my knuckles, and found more than 200 ways to replace it.

Emotion Beats and Physical Manifestations

Smart people might exhibit overblown egos, or they might try to hide their intelligence. Countless women have been part of the latter group for centuries, concealing their intellect behind a façade of helpless submission when interacting with males.

I created two sets of beats that might suit the preceding groups.

Flaunting One’s Intelligence

• a mocking smile
• a pinched mouth
• a supercilious gaze through half-lidded eyes
• arching an eyebrow
• curling one’s lip
• elevating one’s chin
• half-lidded eyes
• holding one’s head high or tilting it back
• laughing at someone
• maintaining eye contact
• pronounced lip-pursing
• raising one eyebrow
• rolling one’s eyes
• snorting
• sticking one’s nose into the air
• sticking out one’s tongue
• tense muscles around one’s closed mouth
• thrusting one’s jaw forward
• thrusting out one’s chin
• thumbing one’s nose at someone
• wrinkling one’s nose
• yawning while someone is talking

Attempt to Conceal One’s Intelligence

• a blank stare
• a puckered forehead
• a tight-lipped smile
• biting one’s lip
• biting one’s nails
• blushing
• covering one’s mouth with a hand
• frowning or scowling
• glancing away
• glazed eyes
• gritting one’s teeth
• keeping one’s mouth closed
• looking down
• lowering one’s eyebrows
• lowering one’s head
• maintaining minimal eye contact
• playing with one’s hair or mustache
• pressing one’s lips together
• propping one’s head in one’s hands
• focusing one’s attention on anything or anyone except where attention should be focused

If you need additional beats, consult a body language dictionary. (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

Adjectives to Replace Smart

Rather than describe a character as smart, you could substitute one of the following words or phrases.

A to N
able, accomplished, acute, adept, astute, brainy, bright, brilliant, capable, clever, competent, crafty, cunning, discerning, discriminating, erudite, expert, genius, gifted, incisive, ingenious, innovative, insightful, intelligent, inventive, judicious, knowledgeable, laser-focused, nimble-witted

O to W
on the ball, perceptive, percipient, perspicacious, proficient, quick on the uptake, quick-witted, resourceful, sagacious, sage, sapient, savvy, sharp, sharp-witted, shrewd, streetwise, talented, well-educated, well-read, whip-smart, wily, wise, with a good head on one’s shoulders, witty

Similes and Metaphors

Direct and indirect comparisons that incorporate the following phrases can illustrate the smartness or stupidity of a character.

• a bright light
• a dazzling wit
• bright as [a burnt-out bulb, dancing sunbeams, a mud puddle, a newly minted gold coin]
• dim as [a corpse, a lump of coal, a snuffed candle]
• dull as [a blunt butter knife, a paper clip]
• with the intelligence of [a brick, a genius, a log, mud, slime, a snail]
• more brains than [Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk]
• sharp as [a bayonet, a dull knife, a razor, a scalpel, a Swiss Army knife]

Nouns for Smartness (Intelligence)

You could replace smartness by one of the following nouns. Note the connotations, and then pick one that suits your narrative.

A to H
ability, accuracy, acuity, acumen, acuteness, adroitness, aptitude, astuteness, awareness, braininess, brainpower, brains, brilliance, canniness, chops, cleverness, cognition, competence, comprehension, creativity, cunning, discernment, expertise, farsightedness, genius, grasp, grey/gray matter, horse sense

I to O
ingeniousness, ingenuity, innovation, innovativeness, insight, intellect, intellectual capacity, intellectuality, intelligence, inventiveness, IQ, judgment, judiciousness, ken, knack, knowhow, knowledge, logic, mastery, mental ability, mental capacity, mentality, mother wit, moxie, nous, originality

P to W
perception, perceptiveness, perspicuity, powers of reasoning, precocity, proficiency, prowess, prudence, quickness, quick-wittedness, ratiocination, reason, reasoning ability, resourcefulness, sagacity, savvy, sense, sharpness, shrewdness, skill, smarts, talent, trenchancy, understanding, vision, wisdom, wit

Props Can Help

Well-chosen props augment a story by sparking new twists or subplots. They also reveal clues about a character’s age, occupation, phobias, or leisure activities.

Example1: A protagonist has his head frozen via a cryonics procedure, hoping he will be reanimated when scientists discover a cure for _____. How might this affect his intelligence? Can you add an unexpected twist?

Example 2: Exposure to toxins creates an unusual reaction in a woman who is taking hormone injections for IVF (in vitro fertilization): multiple fetuses with above-average intelligence? a fetus who can read minds?

Example 3: Time travel causes a cumulative effect on an alien who journeys to several centuries on Earth: good effect? bad effect? increase in telepathic abilities? degradation of the moral center of the brain?

Potential Props:

• addiction to [danger (adrenaline rush), drugs, gambling, sex]
• amnesia
• brain injury caused by [gunshot, oxygen deprivation, sports injury, suicide attempt, vehicle accident]
• callosal syndrome (split-brain)
• continuous pain
• creatine supplements
• cryonics
• cryotherapy
• dementia
• dissociative identity disorder (DID, multiple personality disorder)
• exposure to toxins
• high fever
• human raised by [aliens, apes, bears, dragons, elves, kelpies, leprechauns, lions, unicorns, Yeti]
• identical twins with dramatically different IQs even though raised in the same household
• IQ test
• isolation from all stimuli
• large/small brain
• malnutrition
• marijuana
• neurosurgery
• pollution
• sleep deprivation
• stressful situation
• studying for an important exam
• temporal anomalies
• time travel
• transporter accident (science fiction)
• viral or bacterial infection

Clichés, Idioms, and Other Phrases That Include Smart

Although clichés and idioms function well for some dialogue, they often result in repetition. When appropriate, consider replacing them.

book-smart: learned, well-educated, well-read

energy smart: energy-efficient, energy-saving

smart aleck: know-it-all, wiseacre

smart apple: smug prodigy, smug wunderkind

smart as a whip: quick-thinking, quick-witted, sharp

smart as paint: bright, brilliant, witty

smart-ass: annoyingly smug, irritatingly clever

smart bomb: radio- or laser-controlled bomb

smart cookie: expert, guru, innovator, inventor

smart grid: reactive/responsive electrical network

smart-mouthed: brash, cheeky, disrespectful, impertinent

smart move: profitable decision, intelligent action, well-timed move

smart set: elite, glitterati, high society, plutocracy

The smart money is on something: something is likely to happen

to get smart with someone: cheek, sass, talk back

to look smart: look neat or professional

to think one is (so) smart: be conceited or overconfident