wise guy

plural wise guys

1. derogatoryhumorousinformalmildlysarcasticOne who is insolent or flippant; one who makes jokes or perpetrates pranks.

   Her reputation for being a wise guy made her new teachers hesitant about having her in their classes.

   1 more example

   Leiter wound down a window. 'Whaddya want ter do?' asked the driver over his shoulder. 'Gimme pneumony?' 'Just that,' said Leiter, 'if it means saving us from this gas chamber.' 'Wise guy, hn?' said the driver, crashing tinnily through his gears.

   1954, Ian Fleming, “The Big Switchboard”, in Live and Let Die, London: Pan Books, published 1957, page 38

   Synonyms: know-all, know-it-all, smart aleck, smarty, wisecracker, wisenheimer

2. slangA knowledgeable or successful sports bettor.
3. USslangA member of the Mafia; a mobster.

   Synonyms: Mafioso

4. slangA hipster.
5. ethnicoffensiveslangslurAn Italian-American man.