1
as in grins
to express an emotion (as amusement) by curving the lips upward
the soldier smiled in pleasure when he saw the giant sign welcoming him home
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in laughs
to express scornful amusement by means of facial contortions
smiled at their ridiculous antics and walked away in disgust
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of smiles
Kaya Genç, The Dial, 9 June 2026
Those smiles on their children will never be seen again by their parents and brother, Panish said.
—City News Service, Daily News, 3 June 2026
The responder smiles proudly before throwing his hands into the air.
—Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Maddy smiles when that happens.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 1 June 2026
Despite being all smiles out in public together, tensions seem to be rising between Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster behind closed doors.
—Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 1 June 2026
At the table, Ali gives grace as Rue appears at the other end and smiles at her old friend.
—Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 1 June 2026
Melton smiles and reaches for her hand.
—Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 27 May 2026
Instead, the now-former defendants appeared in court all smiles, hugging one another before the proceedings began.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 26 May 2026
Verb
İmamoğlu appears at the end and smiles silently.
—Kaya Genç, The Dial, 9 June 2026
Those smiles on their children will never be seen again by their parents and brother, Panish said.
—City News Service, Daily News, 3 June 2026
The responder smiles proudly before throwing his hands into the air.
—Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Maddy smiles when that happens.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 1 June 2026
Despite being all smiles out in public together, tensions seem to be rising between Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster behind closed doors.
—Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 1 June 2026
At the table, Ali gives grace as Rue appears at the other end and smiles at her old friend.
—Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 1 June 2026
Melton smiles and reaches for her hand.
—Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 27 May 2026
Instead, the now-former defendants appeared in court all smiles, hugging one another before the proceedings began.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 26 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smiles
Verb
-
Paul Anthony Kelly grins from ear to ear on a sunny day in New York City on May 26.—
People Staff,
PEOPLE,
30 May 2026
-
Attenborough grins, laughs and is speechless with delight.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
My musical theater peers would have been very hard on me [laughs].—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
30 May 2026
-
Now, the couple mostly laughs about the moment, even though Crawford admits the memory will probably stick with them forever.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
Greg’s smile, contrasted with the frowns and thumbs-down from the rest of the crew, makes for an entertaining visual.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Those surrounding the bride stood up and began clapping, their frowns shifting to wide smiles.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
And yet, the wry grimaces that followed said the quiet part out loud.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
30 Mar. 2026
-
In the video, Claffey tries to move Ansell away from the subject and grimaces at the camera when his costar seems to say a little too much.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smiles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smiles. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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