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 simper
Noun
Sandoval, in comparison, sneers and simpers to no success whatsoever; his bad behavior, on and off The Traitors, yields nothing.—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025 Today’s announcement marks the emergence of a new GE, a high-tech industrial GE — simper, stronger, a more focused company at the core.—Jon Chesto, BostonGlobe.com, 26 June 2018 Al Capone lived as a schoolyard bully, died in a simper with a brain et by syphilis, and lives on through eternity as a cigarillo mascot and gimme film role for dark-haired white actors who want a chance to really chew some scenery.—Paul Dailing, Chicago Reader, 21 Dec. 2017
Verb
Corden’s Yvan, initially a simpering third wheel, becomes the play’s buoyant center as the evening progresses.—Christopher Barnard, Vogue, 17 Sep. 2025 Edelman brings goofy charm to Adam, a gullible and guileless father of four, while Key is consistently funny as the simpering Ken.—Kristen Baldwin, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Sep. 2025 Brewer, particularly, redefines the bullying aristocrat, played in the movie as a simpering sadist, but a more robust, complicated man onstage.—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 8 July 2025 Franco is simpering when he wasn’t distracted, and while Hathaway brings a bit of spirit, most of her lines are only half-funny.—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025 Didn’t want to be a part of that simpering sorority, a keeper of that shameful secret (for so it was considered at the time), that failure.—Alice McDermott, Harper's Magazine, 11 Sep. 2023 And Grant has made something of a second career out of playing charmingly louche rogues of late, smiling and simpering to perfection as the greedy backstabbing Forge.—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 31 Mar. 2023
The title role is played by Jaafar Jackson, the son of Michael’s brother Jermaine, with a shy smile that’s faintly familiar and frenetic dance moves that are strongly familiar.
—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
Wearing a bright green coat, black trousers and white shoes, the heavy-lidded, tousel-haired Elvis surveyed his audience with a half-smile on his lips and then cut loose with a three-piece band backing him up.
—
Orlando Sentinel Staff,
The Orlando Sentinel,
20 Apr. 2026
The snowy-haired Scot waves me into the passenger seat of his Can-Am Traxter with a huge grin and navigates us through the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it town, famously anchored by mainland Britain’s most remote pub, the Old Forge.
With a smirk on his face, Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman interrupted the question.
—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
14 Apr. 2026
Barcelona, created by a small group of rock-and-roll writers from Buenos Aires, approached news stories from Argentina and around the world with a smirk.