Talk:Smart Alec
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'al1k' means 'clumsy' or 'stupid' in Turkish. [the third letter is an 'i' without a dot, which has an 'euh' sound]
(source: Ingilizce-Türkce/Türkce-Ingilizce Redhouse Büyük Elsözlüğü, Redhouse Yayinlevi, Istanbul, 1994)
I understand a 'smart aleck' to be a 'show-off' who is not necessarily very bright, thus a 'smart oaf,' which would fit the above Turkish definition of 'al1k.'
I don't know where the Turkish term originated, but I think we should follow this trail across the Bosporus.
