as in blank
not expressing any emotion
he delivered the joke in such a deadpan voice that we thought at first that he was serious
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of deadpan
Bronstein, her every utterance brimming with deadpan passive-aggression, was shrewd to cast herself as one of Linda’s many antagonists.
—
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
Along with Arcuri, the recurring cast features Caroline Rhea (Sabrina the Teenage Witch) as Gina, Sheriff Fox’s deadpan and efficient assistant and the face of the Edgewater County Sheriff’s Office.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 24 Sep. 2025
That all sounds like the workaday stuff of romantic drama, but A Big Bold Beautiful Journey—its script is by Seth Reiss, who co-wrote the 2022 foodie satire The Menu—takes some wacky swings, all presented with a deadpan flourish.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 19 Sep. 2025
Just like everything old that becomes new again, this generation has claimed Ortega’s dark, stoic, intimidating, deadpan take on Wednesday as their own—perfect Halloween costume material.
—Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deadpan
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
Along with Arcuri, the recurring cast features Caroline Rhea (Sabrina the Teenage Witch) as Gina, Sheriff Fox’s deadpan and efficient assistant and the face of the Edgewater County Sheriff’s Office.
—Claire Franken, TVLine, 24 Sep. 2025
That all sounds like the workaday stuff of romantic drama, but A Big Bold Beautiful Journey—its script is by Seth Reiss, who co-wrote the 2022 foodie satire The Menu—takes some wacky swings, all presented with a deadpan flourish.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 19 Sep. 2025
Just like everything old that becomes new again, this generation has claimed Ortega’s dark, stoic, intimidating, deadpan take on Wednesday as their own—perfect Halloween costume material.
—Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal, Parents, 18 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for deadpan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deadpan
Adjective
-
The court found Kurashov guilty of firing on the Ukrainian soldier at point blank range during an attack in the vicinity of the village of Pryiutne in the Zaporizhzhia region on January 6, 2024.—
Sophie Tanno,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Similarly, in the second move, the number eight from the top row is moved down, creating a blank square in the middle of the top row.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Bale ran to the corner of the pitch, and, having been an expressionless bystander for much of the evening, shouted in ecstasy.—
Hua Hsu,
The New Yorker,
21 Nov. 2022
-
The company poured $10 billion into its Reality Labs division last year, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg was criticized last week after posting a selfie that showed an expressionless version of his avatar in front of the Eiffel Tower.—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
30 Aug. 2022
Adjective
-
Mia Wasikowska plays Edith, an heiress who marries a seductive baron, Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), and moves into his enormous, decaying mansion — which is also inhabited by Thomas' enigmatic sister, Lucille (Jessica Chastain).—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Oct. 2025
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Brides finds Sally Bishop (Cooke) and her husband on a trip to Northern Italy in 1961, where they get stranded at a remote villa run by the enigmatic Vova (Lawtey), who presides over a household of beautiful, deathless women (Turner-Smith, Prettejohn) and their caretaker (Gorman).—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Modern buildings go up in the impassive lunar desert.—
Susan Sontag,
Vogue,
26 Oct. 2025
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But the most spectacular aspect of Nuestra Tierra may be its use of drone camerawork, and the way Martel uses the unsettling stillness of a drone as the eye of an impassive god, looking down at the wrongs carried out by those on the ground.—
Vulture Staff,
Vulture,
23 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Though deBessonet’s production strips away a lot of the bunting, Ragtime has a stolid and demonstrative core and an educational tone worthy of EPCOT.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
16 Oct. 2025
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But the drama can be very stolid, borderline dull at times.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
24 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deadpan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deadpan. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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