as in grimaced
to smile in an unpleasant way because you are pleased with yourself, glad about someone else's trouble, etc.
She tried not to smirk when they announced the winner.
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Recent Examples of smirked
While his competitors smirked at the notion of a jukebox mobile, Jobs drove Apple to create the iPhone.
—
Big Think, 3 Nov. 2025
Sneed repeated, and then smirked.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 26 Sep. 2025
Stabler smirked before opening the door for her and wishing her a good night.
—Alex Ross, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
Chiles, waiting to speak in the back of the room, shook his head briefly and smirked.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
When told about his numbers, Coleman kind of smirked at the total, expecting a larger number.
—Chris Hays, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Big Think, 3 Nov. 2025
Sneed repeated, and then smirked.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 26 Sep. 2025
Stabler smirked before opening the door for her and wishing her a good night.
—Alex Ross, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
Chiles, waiting to speak in the back of the room, shook his head briefly and smirked.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 12 Sep. 2025
When told about his numbers, Coleman kind of smirked at the total, expecting a larger number.
—Chris Hays, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smirked
Verb
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Shelton first grimaced in pain after hitting a forehand at the end of the third set.—
Adam Zagoria,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
-
Roupp immediately grimaced and collapsed onto the infield grass.—
Andrew Baggarly,
New York Times,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
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After the photo opportunity, the girls stared at Minnie with Bennett taking a particular interest in the Disney character’s glam look.—
Rachel McRady,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025
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Perhaps this is the first time the group stared into the rearview mirror to think about something akin to a greatest hits set.—
Daniel Dylan Wray,
Pitchfork,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Behar scowled at Goldberg's comment, which opened the floodgates for the remaining panelists.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Just don’t forget to bring a cup or water bottle to sample the water, as drinking directly from the spout is frowned upon.—
Cat Sposato,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Nov. 2025
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While wave pools were once frowned upon by most surfers who argued machines couldn’t replace Mother Nature, many have come around as technology has improved.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Smirked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smirked. Accessed 1 Dec. 2025.
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