smit
v. C2 Proficiency US //ˈsmɪt// UK //smˈɪt// smit
v. to infect someone with a disease or to mark something with a stain. It is an old-fashioned word used mostly in specific local areas.
v. to infect with a disease or to contaminate; also used to describe marking sheep with a distinctive dye. Primarily dialectal or archaic in modern usage.
The farmer used a red dye to smit his sheep.
In some northern dialects, people still use the word to describe how a cold might smit everyone in the house.
The shepherd spent the afternoon in the pens to smit the flock, ensuring each animal bore the owner's mark before they were released onto the common grazing land.
Usage
The verb is transitive and often appears in agricultural or regional contexts.