sharp
/ʃɑɹp/adjective, adverb, noun, verb
sharp is spelled S-H-A-R-P: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 30 times per million words in written English, the 3,114th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, sharp means “Terminating in a point or edge, especially one that can cut or pierce easily; not dull, obtuse, or rounded” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in sharp?
| Letters | 5: S-H-A-R-P |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 30 times per million words; the 3,114th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is sharp?
Sharp appears 30 times per million words in written English, the 3,114th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce sharp?
- British /ʃɑːp/
- US /ʃɑɹp/
- Australia /ʃɐːp/
Sharp has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Back_ache-sharp.wav, En-us-sharp.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with sharp?
6 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as sharp from its last stressed vowel (/ɑɹp/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of sharp
- sharper comparative
- sharpest superlative
- sharps plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- sharping participle, present
- sharped participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sharp mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Terminating in a point or edge, especially one that can cut or pierce easily; not dull, obtuse, or rounded.
I keep my knives sharp so that they don't slip unexpectedly while carving.
- 2
colloquialIntelligent.
My nephew is a sharp lad; he can count to 100 in six languages, and he's only five years old.
- 3
Raised by one semitone (denoted by the symbol ⟨♯⟩ after the name of the note).
- 4
Higher in pitch than required.
The orchestra's third violin several times was sharp about an eighth of a tone.
- 5
Having a strong acrid or acidic taste.
Milly couldn't stand sharp cheeses when she was pregnant, because they made her nauseated.
- 6
Sudden, abrupt, intense, rapid.
A pregnant woman during labor normally experiences a number of sharp contractions.
- 7
colloquialIllegal or dishonest.
Michael had a number of sharp ventures that he kept off the books.
- 8
colloquialKeenly or unduly attentive to one's own interests; shrewd, verging on dishonest.
a sharp dealer, a sharp customer, sharp practice
adverb
- 1
To a point or edge.
- 2
Piercingly.
- 3
Eagerly.
- 4
So as to make a sharp, or tight, angle.
South of the city the river turns sharp to the east.
- 5
Exactly.
I'll see you at twelve o'clock sharp.
- 6
In a higher pitch than is correct or desirable.
I didn't enjoy the concert much because the soprano sang sharp on all the high notes.
noun
- 1
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 one chromatic semitone higher.
The pitch pipe sounded out a perfect F♯ (F sharp).
- 2
A note that is played one chromatic semitone higher than usual; denoted by the name of the note that is followed by the symbol ⟨♯⟩.
- 3
A note that is sharp in a particular key.
The piece was difficult to read after it had been transposed, since in the new key many notes were sharps.
- 4
The scale having a particular sharp note as its tonic.
Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata is written in C♯ minor (C sharp minor).
- 5
Something that is sharp.
Place sharps in the specially marked red container for safe disposal.
- 6
A hypodermic syringe.
- 7
datedA scalpel or other edged instrument used in surgery.
- 8
A sharp object; any item pointed enough to injure human skin.
verb
- 1
To raise the pitch of a note half a step making a natural note a sharp.
That new musician must be tone deaf: he sharped half the notes of the song!
- 2
To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper.
- 3
obsoleteTo sharpen.
noun
- 1
Acronym of skinhead against racial prejudice.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sharp in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | affilé, coupant, affuté, tranchant, acéré, effilé |
| German | scharf , scharfsinning , spitz , -is , hoch |
| Portuguese | afiado, aguçado, agudo , esperto, inteligente , pontudo |
| Spanish | agudo, afilado, filoso, puntiagudo, punzocortante, cortopunzante |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does sharp come from?
From Middle English scharp, from Old English sċearp, from Proto-West Germanic *skarp, from Proto-Germanic *skarpaz, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kerb-, from *(s)ker- (“to cut”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).