Meaning

verb inflict a heavy blow on, with the hand, a tool, or a weapon

verb affect suddenly with deep feeling

verb cause physical pain or suffering in

originFrom Middle English smytinge, smitende, smytende, smitand, from Old English smītende, from Proto-Germanic *smītandz, present participle of Proto-Germanic *smītaną (“to throw, hurl, bespatter”), equivalent to smite + -ing.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0