I was chatting with a friend the other night, and we stumbled (yes, perhaps a bit late in life) on the interesting duo of smite and smitten. I think of being smitten as a sweet, romantic feeling; but if god or someone were to smite me, I don't think I'd be too pleased. Just musing aprint.

Dear boronia: I share your take on this. What is your take on "stunning" as a compliment on attractive costume?
To me, stunning sounds like violent impact of blunt instrument.

At our Christmas party last night one of the women wore a crochetted dress, very lovely and very attractive. A couple of the men looked like they had just been "smited" with a blunt instrument.

So crocheted costume caused optoecdysiasm viagravation and catatonia.

viagravation

Bravo, Dr Bill!!

This is interesting, boronia. Smitten doesn't necessarily always refer to good things, but I can't think of any uses of smite that normally would be considered a positive thing. Well, smite a blow for justice, maybe.
From Merriam-Webster:
Main Entry: smite
Pronunciation: 'smIt
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): smote /'smOt/; smit·ten /'smi-t&n/; or smote; smit·ing /'smI-ti[ng]/
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English smItan to smear, defile; akin to Old High German bismIzan to defile
Date: 12th century
transitive senses
1 : to strike sharply or heavily especially with the hand or an implement held in the hand
2 a : to kill or severely injure by smiting b : to attack or afflict suddenly and injuriously <smitten by disease>
3 : to cause to strike
4 : to affect as if by striking <children smitten with the fear of hell -- V. L. Parrington>
5 : CAPTIVATE, TAKE <smitten with her beauty>
intransitive senses : to deliver or deal a blow with or as if with the hand or something held

The OED dates the love-striking sense (its sense 8) to 1665. I suppose it comes from a jocular use of sense 6: "To infect, imbue, impress, strike suddenly or strongly with some feeling or sentiment. Chiefly in pa. pple. ME.", the quotation for which is still negative: "Wit strang dred he smiton was."

Oh, I forget to mention something I noticed in passing:

Smooch (smûtS), v. Latterly U.S. 1631. [Cf. SMUTCH v.] trans. To sully, dirty.

Ahhhhhhhh, to be smitten and smooching is stunning and y'all know exactly what I'm talking about.

Dear Jenet: And a smith uses gentle taps as well as mighty blows.