plural smelts or smelt
: any of a family (Osmeridae) of small bony fishes that closely resemble the trouts in general structure, live along coasts and ascend rivers to spawn or are landlocked, and have delicate oily flesh with a distinctive odor and taste
smelted; smelting; smelts
1
: to melt or fuse (a substance, such as ore) often with an accompanying chemical change usually to separate the metal
smelt
3 of 3chiefly British past participle of smell entry 1
Examples of smelt in a Sentence
Verb
the process used for smelting iron ore
Recent Examples on the Web
Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 24 Jan. 2025
Currently, regulations limit the amount of water that can be pumped from the nearby Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in order to protect a fish called the smelt.
—Lauren Irwin, The Hill, 9 Jan. 2025
Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2025
Up to 4,000 years ago in the Yellow River Valley, craftspeople were smelting tin, copper and lead into bronze goblets, and Shang dynasty nobles drank rice wine from these ornate cups.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smelt
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Trump’s reference to the Delta smelt centers on a decades-old water battle in California between cities, farmers and the environment.
—Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 24 Jan. 2025
Currently, regulations limit the amount of water that can be pumped from the nearby Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in order to protect a fish called the smelt.
—Lauren Irwin, The Hill, 9 Jan. 2025
Verb
Archaeologists identified one section of ruins as a mining factory where stones were crushed, passed through a filtration system, then put into smelting ovens in order to extract gold.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2025
Up to 4,000 years ago in the Yellow River Valley, craftspeople were smelting tin, copper and lead into bronze goblets, and Shang dynasty nobles drank rice wine from these ornate cups.
—Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for smelt
Articles Related to smelt
Cite this Entry
“Smelt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/smelt. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
smelt
1 of 2 noun
plural smelts or smelt
: any of several very small food fishes that look like the related trouts and live in fresh water or in coastal sea waters
smelt
2 of 2 verb1
: to melt (as ore) usually in order to separate the metal
2
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share