Synonyms of smiling

smiling 1 of 3

adjective

as in laughing

Related Words

• laughing
• amused
• jovial
• giggling
• chuckling
• merry
• gleeful
• jolly
• cheerful
• beaming
• mirthful
• cheery
• jocose
• carefree
• festive
• upbeat
• jocular
• blithe
• buoyant
• lighthearted
• sunny
• perky
• joyful
• chipper
• joking
• jubilant
• bouncing
• joyous
• vivacious
• exuberant
• spirited
• lively
• ecstatic
• jocund
• delighted
• enraptured
• jaunty
• animated
• blithesome
• gay
• exultant
• sprightly
• happy
• amusing
• radiant
• rapturous
• blissful
• peppy
• euphoric
• playful
• frisky
• funny
• witty
• hilarious
• blessed
• flippant
• bright
• elated
• optimistic
• overjoyed
• unconcerned
• facetious
• exhilarated
• lightsome
• thrilled
• easygoing
• tickled
• hopeful
• frolicsome
• entranced
• zippy
• sportive
• jesting
• rosy
• gladsome
• ravished
• sanguine
• joshing
• insouciant
• cavalier
• sprightful
• high
• humorous
• comic
• happy-go-lucky
• comical
• riotous
• antic
• uproarious
• farcical
• devil-may-care
• sidesplitting

Dissimilar Words

• crying
• sad
• blue
• unhappy
• depressed
• downcast
• sorrowful
• melancholy
• weeping
• anguished
• glum
• disconsolate
• dejected
• aggrieved
• forlorn
• despondent
• crestfallen
• abject
• wailing
• dispirited
• sobbing
• heartbroken
• saddened
• disheartened
• brokenhearted
• discontented
• disgruntled
• moody
• sorry
• mournful
• black
• plaintive
• heartsick
• gray
• doleful
• sullen
• downhearted
• dark
• moaning
• lugubrious
• gloomy
• somber
• heavyhearted
• low-spirited
• groaning
• joyless
• morose
• depressing
• bleak
• lachrymose
• woeful
• cheerless
• dolorous
• dismal
• desolate
• saturnine
• miserable
• dreary
• woebegone
• comfortless
• listless
• wretched
• lethargic
• sluggish
• dull
• torpid

smiling

2 of 3

noun

as in cheering

Related Words

• laughing
• cheering
• rejoicing
• exultation

Dissimilar Words

• tears
• keen
• groan
• wail
• howl
• moan
• lament
• lamentation
• cry
• plaint
• sob
• suffering
• weeping
• mourning
• sorrowing
• grieving
• agonizing

smiling

3 of 3

verb

present participle of smile

1

as in grinning

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

• grinning
• laughing
• beaming
• sneering
• smirking
• simpering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

2

as in sneering

to express scornful amusement by means of facial contortions

smiled at their ridiculous antics and walked away in disgust

Synonyms & Similar Words

• laughing
• sneering
• snickering
• sniggering
• snorting
• sniffing
• jeering
• insulting
• ridiculing
• mocking
• deriding
• gibing
• hooting
• disdaining
• taunting
• despising
• teasing
• decrying
• disparaging
• belittling
• scoffing (at)
• scorning
• catcalling
• tormenting
• razzing
• riding
• heckling
• ribbing
• jiving
• bad-mouthing
• pooh-poohing
• putting down

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of smiling

Adjective

Women in black hijabs and abayas, many wearing badges depicting Zahra’s smiling face, lined the streets as men prayed over her casket, placed outside the Husseiniya, a Shiite hall. — Rania Abouzeid, New Yorker, 21 May 2026

As Thomas’ parents, Katina Smith and Bobby Thomas, unveiled their son’s smiling statue in the Broncos’ Ring of Fame Plaza last Sunday, as scores of his former teammates looked on in sadness and joy, Miller was 800 miles away in Dallas, gearing up for a game against the Cowboys. — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 24 Oct. 2025

Noun

In the post, De Laurentiis shared an image of Jade, 18, sitting on her dorm bed holding Radiohead’s In Rainbows record and smiling. — Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 31 Aug. 2026

The boos were more scattered and barely audible amidst the applause and cheers, which grew louder when the ballpark’s video boards showed the 2018 champ smiling, clapping, and waving from the visitors’ dugout. — Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 21 Aug. 2026

Karen Jesch, a PhD student at Boston College’s Canine Cognition Center, points out that human smiling is a strange behavior to begin with, and not always a happy one. — Niranjana Rajalakshmi, Popular Science, 14 May 2026

There was a lot of nervous smiling. — Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025

Umanmielen responded with a GIF of a smiling, but famously blind, Stevie Wonder. — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 25 Sep. 2025

Verb

The school janitor emerged from a gap in the trees, smiling cheerfully. — Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026

Stephens drew even more ire for celebrating on the field and then smiling on the bench — and for returning to the Trojans' sideline in the second half after being ejected. — ABC News, 27 Sep. 2026

On Wednesday, Saperstein attended a memorial ceremony in the building lobby, where over 50 people gathered to light prayer candles beneath two photos of him smiling. — Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 24 Sep. 2026

The preview ends with a heart-swelling image of Osbourne smiling and squirming with joy in his throne. — Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 24 Sep. 2026

The crew is warm and friendly, smiling and personable, all about the ship. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Sep. 2026

That edited photo, which shows the students — both the fake one and a pair of real ones — smiling and holding up plates of food, was then plastered around campus to promote the university’s dining hall. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 23 Sep. 2026

After all these years, Royals captain Salvador Perez is still smiling. — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 23 Sep. 2026

Charlotte reshared the post to her own Instagram Stories page while Gellar posted another snap to her Stories, in which the duo are both smiling for the camera. — Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Sep. 2026