smarmy

/ˈsmɑrmi/

Other forms: smarmiest

Smarmy describes someone who is overly flattering and fake. A smarmy student might tell a teacher, "You're looking even more lovely than usual today," with a big smile.

Smarmy describes someone who goes way over the top trying to be suave and charming — fooling no one. A smarmy car salesman will compliment your outfit and your hair and your taste in cars, always with an unpleasant falseness. In the 1930s, smarm was a verb that described smearing the hair with pomade, which makes it look shiny and slick. Back then, smarm also meant smearing with flattery.

Definitions of smarmy

1. adjective

   unpleasantly and excessively suave or ingratiating in manner or speech
   “smarmy self-importance”

   synonyms: buttery, fulsome, oily, oleaginous, soapy, unctuous

   insincere

   lacking sincerity