Synonyms of grinning

grinning 1 of 2

adjective

as in smiling

Related Words

• smiling
• laughing
• beaming
• joyous
• delighted
• joyful
• gleeful
• satisfied
• jovial
• glad
• blissful
• merry
• happy
• pleased
• mirthful
• gratified
• jolly
• tickled
• unconcerned
• carefree
• boon
• careless
• lighthearted
• cavalier
• insouciant
• easygoing
• perky
• jocund
• jaunty
• chirpy
• optimistic
• lively
• sprightly
• vivacious
• animated
• lilting
• hopeful
• rosy
• sanguine
• happy-go-lucky
• cheerful
• cheery
• devil-may-care
• buoyant
• upbeat
• chipper
• blithe
• sunny
• sprightful
• gay
• blithesome
• winsome
• gladsome
• bright
• canty
• eupeptic
• lightsome

Dissimilar Words

• sullen
• sulky
• glum
• gloomy
• morose
• dour
• saturnine
• sad
• unhappy
• unsatisfied
• joyless
• listless
• dull
• sluggish
• lethargic
• blue
• crestfallen
• downcast
• forlorn
• torpid
• disconsolate
• mirthless
• dejected
• down
• depressed
• despondent
• sorrowful
• melancholy
• hangdog
• inconsolable
• low
• droopy
• disheartened
• brokenhearted
• downhearted
• low-spirited
• heavyhearted

grinning

2 of 2

verb

present participle of grin

as in laughing

to express an emotion (as amusement) by curving the lips upward

grinned at the kids' fooling around in the pool

Synonyms & Similar Words

• smiling
• laughing
• beaming
• smirking
• sneering
• simpering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• grimacing
• frowning
• scowling
• glaring
• glowering
• lowering
• pouting
• sulking
• glooming

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of grinning

Verb

But what differentiates them from some of their peers is the unyielding pace of their live shows, all of it delivered with the grinning joy of playing rock ‘n’ roll. — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026

This plush captures its jolly mood with a big smile and a grinning sun across its belly (complete with sunglasses). — Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 3 Aug. 2026

Prince William had a rare casual moment while go-karting in July 1988 at Buckmore Park Playscape, captured in a portrait of him grinning while holding his helmet. — Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 22 July 2026

In the winning clubhouse Sunday afternoon, White Sox prospect Caleb Bonemer couldn’t stop grinning. — Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 12 July 2026

The coach of everyone’s favorite team to adore – rowing, grinning, flowing-haired Norway – saw this coming. — Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor, 7 July 2026

In reality, Platner was the Democratic-candidate equivalent of the grinning empty suit who gets the job after a handshake because the boss likes the cut of his jib. — Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 6 July 2026

The images are of snow-heavy trees, a chairlift overhead, and Kerstin grinning with ski goggles lifted. — William Finnegan, New Yorker, 29 June 2026

Scary Movie 1 star Jon Abrahams returns to menace Cindy, his ex, by grinning at her like a maniac in a psychiatric holding facility. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 5 June 2026