as in frowning
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as in glaring
to look with anger or disapproval
scowled down at the misbehaving child
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scowling
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
Part of me believes that, if Indiana wins, Cignetti should retire after this season and spend the rest of his life on a beach, scowling at resort attendants and being basically unimpeachable forever.
—Will Leitch, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Picture Andy Warhol scowling in the corner of the billiards room.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025
Now our favorite scowling friend is getting his own movie, too.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 15 Oct. 2025
Verb
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
Part of me believes that, if Indiana wins, Cignetti should retire after this season and spend the rest of his life on a beach, scowling at resort attendants and being basically unimpeachable forever.
—Will Leitch, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2026
Picture Andy Warhol scowling in the corner of the billiards room.
—Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025
Now our favorite scowling friend is getting his own movie, too.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scowling
Verb
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Beyond a glaring betrayal of the medium the Drafthouse once sought to exalt, the QR policy single-handedly reduces the theater from a sacred space to just another room, which is an illusion that even AMC nominally pledges to maintain.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
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This game began, appropriately enough, with Angela Dugalic blocking Ashton Judd’s shot and then glaring at her as the Longhorn lay in a heap.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Up on their hind legs, sitting around me, staring at me.—
Sabienna Bowman,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
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After staring at the dog for 90 seconds, Green went back into his apartment and then threw a cutting board at the dog.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Woods, 50, is seen frowning in the photo, taken shortly after the legendary golfer was booked into jail on March 27 after his Land Rover rolled over in Jupiter Island, Florida.—
Natasha Dye,
PEOPLE,
3 Apr. 2026
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Hubbard posted an image of herself with a disgusted look on her face from earlier in Season 10, while Dillard shared a photo of himself frowning, also from a scene in the show.—
Payton Turkeltaub,
Variety,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scowling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scowling. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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