as in frowning
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
as in glaring
to look with anger or disapproval
scowled down at the misbehaving child
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scowling
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
10 June 2026
Sean Gregory,
Time,
14 June 2026
Modern tiki tends to take a lighter touch, using more abstract graphics, less imagery of women and scowling gods.
—
Michael Goldstein,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2026
But there’s more to Brind’Amour than the person fans see screaming and scowling behind the bench or stomping around the dressing room in a postwin video looking like some combination of Godzilla and Chris Farley’s famous Matt Foley character.
—
Cory Lavalette,
New York Times,
7 May 2026
My sister was scowling and pacing the path outside my mother’s flat.
—
Douglas Stuart,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
He was picked up first on meth charges on May 14, 1986, according to news reports and a San Francisco police booking photo, which shows him in a blue hoodie scowling into the camera.
—
Senior Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
Then there was that image circulating in the bowels of the internet that showed a man who looked exactly like JD scowling at an unidentifiable brunette woman in a restaurant.
—
Elise Taylor,
Vanity Fair,
13 Feb. 2026
Grejo sank scowling back into his chair as though stung by Adi’s answer.
—
Jonathan Miles,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Their head coach, Curt Cignetti, perpetually scowling beneath his 1950s crew cut, is fuel for countless memes.
—
Keith O’Brien,
The Atlantic,
17 Jan. 2026
Adjective
The video, which has garnered over 70,000 views as of Wednesday, opens with a scowling Donalds, sitting behind the governor’s desk one year into his hypothetical first term.
—
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
10 June 2026
Verb
As a 7-year-old, I’d entertain my father’s friends, at their weekly pickup game at a Bronx barn-house gymnasium, by imitating his game face—bottom lip jutting, eyes scowling.
—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
14 June 2026
Modern tiki tends to take a lighter touch, using more abstract graphics, less imagery of women and scowling gods.
—
Michael Goldstein,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2026
But there’s more to Brind’Amour than the person fans see screaming and scowling behind the bench or stomping around the dressing room in a postwin video looking like some combination of Godzilla and Chris Farley’s famous Matt Foley character.
—
Cory Lavalette,
New York Times,
7 May 2026
My sister was scowling and pacing the path outside my mother’s flat.
—
Douglas Stuart,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
He was picked up first on meth charges on May 14, 1986, according to news reports and a San Francisco police booking photo, which shows him in a blue hoodie scowling into the camera.
—
Senior Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
Then there was that image circulating in the bowels of the internet that showed a man who looked exactly like JD scowling at an unidentifiable brunette woman in a restaurant.
—
Elise Taylor,
Vanity Fair,
13 Feb. 2026
Grejo sank scowling back into his chair as though stung by Adi’s answer.
—
Jonathan Miles,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Their head coach, Curt Cignetti, perpetually scowling beneath his 1950s crew cut, is fuel for countless memes.
—
Keith O’Brien,
The Atlantic,
17 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scowling
Adjective
-
Balogun then looked over at a frowning Ream, who had just finished urging his teammates to be sure to stop and smell the flowers along this World Cup journey.
Verb
-
The glaring issue in England’s group stage performance stems from the drop-off in goal production from the opener to the final two matches.
-
Klingebiel believes that some cuts to development may be appropriate, if all federal budgets (with the glaring exception of defense) are also tightening their belts.
Verb
-
In Taiwan, a student sitting for an entrance exam for a top medical school was discovered wearing smart glasses after proctors noticed the student staring oddly at the test, leading to an inspection that revealed the frame was emitting heat.
-
Three stories, three separate sets of receipts, with one through line worth staring at until a clearer view emerges.
Cite this Entry
“Scowling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scowling. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
