a musical notation indicating one half step higher than the note named
<noun.communication>
a long thin sewing needle with a sharp point
<noun.artifact> [ adj ]
keenly and painfully felt; as if caused by a sharp edge or point
<adj.all> a sharp pain sharp winds
having or made by a thin edge or sharp point; suitable for cutting or piercing
<adj.all> a sharp knife a pencil with a sharp point
(of a musical note) raised in pitch by one chromatic semitone
<adj.all> C sharp [ adv ]
changing suddenly in direction and degree
<adv.all> the road twists sharply after the light turn sharp left here the visor was acutely peaked her shoes had acutely pointed toes [ adj ]
(of something seen or heard) clearly defined
<adj.all> a sharp photographic image the sharp crack of a twig the crisp snap of dry leaves underfoot
ending in a sharp point
<adj.all>
having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions
<adj.all> an acute observer of politics and politicians incisive comments icy knifelike reasoning as sharp and incisive as the stroke of a fang penetrating insight frequent penetrative observations
marked by practical hardheaded intelligence
<adj.all> a smart businessman an astute tenant always reads the small print in a lease he was too shrewd to go along with them on a road that could lead only to their overthrow
harsh
<adj.all> sharp criticism a sharp-worded exchange a tart remark
having or emitting a high-pitched and sharp tone or tones
<adj.all> a shrill whistle a shrill gaiety
extremely steep
<adj.all> an abrupt canyon the precipitous rapids of the upper river the precipitous hills of Chinese paintings a sharp drop
very sudden and in great amount or degree
<adj.all> a sharp drop in the stock market
quick and forceful
<adj.all> a sharp blow
Sharp \Sharp\, a. [Compar. {Sharper}; superl. {Sharpest}.] [OE. sharp, scharp, scarp, AS. scearp; akin to OS. skarp, LG. scharp, D. scherp, G. scharf, Dan. & Sw. skarp, Icel. skarpr. Cf. {Escarp}, {Scrape}, {Scorpion}.] 1. Having a very thin edge or fine point; of a nature to cut or pierce easily; not blunt or dull; keen.
He dies upon my scimeter's sharp point. --Shak.
2. Terminating in a point or edge; not obtuse or rounded; somewhat pointed or edged; peaked or ridged; as, a sharp hill; sharp features.
3. Affecting the sense as if pointed or cutting, keen, penetrating, acute: to the taste or smell, pungent, acid, sour, as ammonia has a sharp taste and odor; to the hearing, piercing, shrill, as a sharp sound or voice; to the eye, instantaneously brilliant, dazzling, as a sharp flash.
4. (Mus.) (a) High in pitch; acute; as, a sharp note or tone. (b) Raised a semitone in pitch; as, C sharp (C[sharp]), which is a half step, or semitone, higher than C. (c) So high as to be out of tune, or above true pitch; as, the tone is sharp; that instrument is sharp. Opposed in all these senses to {flat}.
5. Very trying to the feelings; piercing; keen; severe; painful; distressing; as, sharp pain, weather; a sharp and frosty air.
Sharp misery had worn him to the bones. --Shak.
The morning sharp and clear. --Cowper.
In sharpest perils faithful proved. --Keble.
6. Cutting in language or import; biting; sarcastic; cruel; harsh; rigorous; severe; as, a sharp rebuke. ``That sharp look.'' --Tennyson.
To that place the sharp Athenian law Can not pursue us. --Shak.
Be thy words severe, Sharp as merits but the sword forbear. --Dryden.
7. Of keen perception; quick to discern or distinguish; having nice discrimination; acute; penetrating; sagacious; clever; as, a sharp eye; sharp sight, hearing, or judgment.
Nothing makes men sharper . . . than want. --Addison.
Many other things belong to the material world, wherein the sharpest philosophers have never ye? arrived at clear and distinct ideas. --L. Watts.
8. Eager in pursuit; keen in quest; impatient for gratification; keen; as, a sharp appetite.
12. Steep; precipitous; abrupt; as, a sharp ascent or descent; a sharp turn or curve.
13. (Phonetics) Uttered in a whisper, or with the breath alone, without voice, as certain consonants, such as p, k, t, f; surd; nonvocal; aspirated.
Note: Sharp is often used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, sharp-cornered, sharp-edged, sharp-pointed, sharp-tasted, sharp-visaged, etc.
{Sharp practice}, the getting of an advantage, or the attempt to do so, by a tricky expedient.
{To brace sharp}, or {To sharp up} (Naut.), to turn the yards to the most oblique position possible, that the ship may lie well up to the wind.
Sharp \Sharp\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Sharped}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Sharping}.] 1. To sharpen. [Obs.] --Spenser.
2. (Mus.) To raise above the proper pitch; to elevate the tone of; especially, to raise a half step, or semitone, above the natural tone.
Sharp \Sharp\, adv. 1. To a point or edge; piercingly; eagerly; sharply. --M. Arnold.
The head [of a spear] full sharp yground. --Chaucer.
You bite so sharp at reasons. --Shak.
2. Precisely; exactly; as, we shall start at ten o'clock sharp. [Colloq.]
{Look sharp}, attend; be alert. [Colloq.]
Sharp \Sharp\, n. 1. A sharp tool or weapon. [Obs.]
If butchers had but the manners to go to sharps, gentlemen would be contented with a rubber at cuffs. --Collier.
2. (Mus.) (a) The character [[sharp]] used to indicate that the note before which it is placed is to be raised a half step, or semitone, in pitch. (b) A sharp tone or note. --Shak.
3. A portion of a stream where the water runs very rapidly. [Prov. Eng.] --C. Kingsley.
4. A sewing needle having a very slender point; a needle of the most pointed of the three grades, blunts, betweens, and sharps.
5. pl. Same as {Middlings}, 1.
6. An expert. [Slang]
Sharp \Sharp\, v. i. 1. To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper. --L'Estrange.
2. (Mus.) To sing above the proper pitch.
The stock, which proved immune to sharp declines in the market last week, fell 3 7/8 yesterday, to 36 5/8, even though the company reported higher earnings.
According to Kelly, maintenance personnel at the airport said the plane's chutes worked properly and that people often suffer ankle and back sprains from the sharp drop down an emergency chute.
That 51% majority for sharp restrictions dropped by three points in a post Webster survey of the same respondents a month later, creating a 48-48 split between those who favored the status quo and those who favored restrictions.
When he was cajoled by his divided German coalition partners to agree sharp price cuts in May, farm reform was in the bag. hard Mr Soisson is the unhappiest member of the cast.
The sharp reduction in coking coal prices agreed between Japan and its Canadian and Australian suppliers has been followed by an even bigger cut on the European market.
The business-information concern said the earnings decline was due in part to "a high single-digit decline" in revenue at U.S. Credit Services and a sharp rise in costs relating to the company's repositioning actions at that division.
Fire department spokeswoman Carolina de Leon said the bus was on its way from the capital to Antigua when the driver made a sharp turn to avoid another vehicle.
He has acknowledged that a sharp reduction in Soviet oil shipments could force Cuba to replace tractors with mules, stop manufacturing adult clothing for five years and reduce bus service in Havana by two-thirds.
Last month's report showing an unexpectedly large $13.83 billion deficit in February triggered a sharp sell-off in both the dollar and Treasury bonds.
SEC Chairman Breeden said he would consider imposing "circuit breakers" to halt program trading during sharp swings in the market.
The purchasing managers' report showed a sharp increase in new factory orders.
A sharp rise in agricultural exports is a key factor in the new administration's economic recovery program.
A sharp rise in Japan's stock market overnight also gave some support to the U.S. market, analysts said.
The society wants a sharp change of course.
The market opened lower following Wall Street's sharp decline Monday, rallied around midday as several key stocks attracted investor interest, and then slid back into negative territory as Wall Street opened weaker.
'This is Congress responding to the street.' Mr De Leon has been a sharp critic of the powerful Guatemalan security forces for their widespread abuse of human rights.
The decline was particularly sharp among banks, which have been leaders in adding women to their boards.
The sharp erosion of corporate credit quality in recent years eased in 1987, with most of the improvement coming in the industrial sector, according to Standard & Poor's Corp.
In 1990, Dollars 124.5bn in syndicated bank credits were recorded. The sharp drop in bank lending reflects growing anxiety about credit quality internationally, the OECD said.
Officials of the Machinists union, the lone union still striking against Eastern, said Eastern's planes are flying at less than half capacity, despite the carrier's sharp fare discounting in hopes of luring back passengers.
"There hasn't been any great big fundamental change in the economy in the past two weeks" to justify the market's sharp move, said Ms. Hughes.
The information was provided by the Natural Resources Defense Council, a Washington, D.C.-based, non-profit group that has lobbied for sharp reductions in pollutants that cause acid rain, such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.
Secretary Baker has been warning in recent days that too sharp a decline in the dollar could prove self-defeating because it might impede the ability of West Germany and Japan to grow rapidly enough to absorb more U.S. products.
In a separate report, the Commerce Department said that business inventories in June rose 0.7% while business sales were up a sharp 1.5%.
But the sharp turnaround in new orders growth "hints of a possible continued easing in the overall future rate of decline in the manufacturing economy," he said.
The best showing of the day came from Ford, which announced third-quarter net income of 79 cents a share, a sharp turnround from the year ago 66 cents a share loss.
In a report to the government, the Korea Foreign Trade Association said the recent sharp rise of the won against the dollar could lead to a series of collapses among exporting firms.
Also contributing to the copper sell-off was the feeling the market may have been overbought, along with the latest 10-day report of automobile sales, which showed a sharp decline.
The stock market pulled back in early trading today, retracing some of Friday's sharp gains ahead of the March consumer price data.
GM can afford to reduce its rebates because sharp production cuts and better-than-expected sales since the stock market crash have held inventories in line.