Smatters

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. Talks about a subject with only slight or superficial knowledge ; marks or covers something with small scattered spots or dabs
2. Speaks about something with limited understanding or expertise ; spreads small quantities or bits across a surface in scattered patches
3. Discusses a topic without deep knowledge or skill ; splashes or sprinkles a substance in small scattered portions over an area

Etymology: "Smatters" is the third-person singular present of "smatter", so the story belongs to the verb. Its earliest recorded sense in Middle English was "to make dirty, defile," and it also meant "to talk idly, chatter" or "to speak foolishly." The sense of dirtying or soiling is the older one, and the modern meaning of a superficial grasp of something is a later development that grew out of the idea of talk without substance. The origin of the verb is uncertain. It may be linked to a Middle English verb "smotten," meaning to corrupt or debase, which is related to German dialect forms meaning to soil, from a word for dirt. Other possible relatives include Swedish "smattra," meaning to patter or rattle, and German "schmettern," to smash or resound, and these may point to an onomatopoeic origin. The Oxford English Dictionary considers the connection to those words very doubtful.

Synonyms: dabbles, tinkers