unsmiling

adjective

un·​smil·​ing ˌən-ˈsmī-liŋ 

: not smiling or tending to smile : marked by a somber or serious expression or attitude

a stern, unsmiling teacher

unsmilingly adverb

His views were unsmilingly stated, implacably held, and amenable to no reasonable argument.

—Simon Winchester

Synonyms

• earnest
• grave
• humorless
• no-nonsense
• po-faced [British]
• sedate
• serious
• severe
• sober
• sobersided
• solemn
• staid
• uncomic
• weighty

Examples of unsmiling in a Sentence

delivered the reprimand with a harsh and unsmiling face

Recent Examples on the Web

On his first trip to the Holy See, Francis’ unsmiling welcome was seen as frigid and unfriendly; both encounters were markedly brief. —Federico Perelmuter, The Dial, 13 Mar. 2025

But at that moment, looking up from the examination table at Tina, her dark hair framing her unsmiling face, Lilian neither hesitated nor flinched. —Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2025

Michaels is an oxymoron: a comedy legend known by the public for his unsmiling face. —Maureen Dowd, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025

The men, terse, unsmiling, and unfailingly polite, keep them under siege for days. —Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 30 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1826, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for unsmiling

• beguiling
• compiling
• profiling
• refiling
• reviling
• stockpiling
• filing
• piling
• smiling
• styling
• tiling
• reconciling