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
Amy Drew Thompson, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 May 2026
Love Story's Paul Anthony Kelly smiles for the camera during a coffee run in SoHo on April 29 in New York City.
—Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 3 May 2026
Sitting off to the end of the table with his headphones on, Romans smiles.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 2 May 2026
Dima sees Lily and Alex across the Medbay and smiles quietly to himself.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 1 May 2026
Endorsement watch Attorney General Chris Carr (right) smiles with his wife, Joan Carr, after casting his vote during the first day of early voting Monday for Georgia's primary elections.
—Adam Beam, AJC.com, 30 Apr. 2026
The family smiles while dressed casually and barefoot, squinting from the sun's rays.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
Verb
Tang smiles from behind the counter.
—Amy Drew Thompson, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 May 2026
Love Story's Paul Anthony Kelly smiles for the camera during a coffee run in SoHo on April 29 in New York City.
—Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 3 May 2026
Sitting off to the end of the table with his headphones on, Romans smiles.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 2 May 2026
Dima sees Lily and Alex across the Medbay and smiles quietly to himself.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 1 May 2026
Endorsement watch Attorney General Chris Carr (right) smiles with his wife, Joan Carr, after casting his vote during the first day of early voting Monday for Georgia's primary elections.
—Adam Beam, AJC.com, 30 Apr. 2026
The family smiles while dressed casually and barefoot, squinting from the sun's rays.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smiles
Verb
-
Attenborough grins, laughs and is speechless with delight.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
8 May 2026
-
Wells, hidden in a tiny video-village setup inside one of the set’s curtained exam rooms, grins at the monitor and turns around to give Einesman a thumbs-up.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Moving on to more pleasant things [laughs].—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
11 May 2026
-
Well, perhaps that’s in the messaging of the people hosting the Met Ball [laughs].—
José Criales-Unzueta,
Vanity Fair,
6 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 14 May. 2026.
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