‘Smarmy’: How It Was Born and Survived

Smarmy is a useful word, as anyone who has had to listen to an oleaginous colleague drone on in a department meeting can attest. Unlike most useful words, its origin can be traced to a particular person — who invented it as a joke.

The OED‘s principal definition for smarmy is “Ingratiating, obsequious; smug, unctuous,” and the first citation is from L. Brock, Deductions of Col. Gore, published in 1924: “Don’t you be taken in by that smarmy swine.” The word is widely used today, with more...