as in grimacing
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 smirking
The smirking Nabokov is tiresome.
—
New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
The Poets smirking at us in the garden, their coats blowing open like bat wings.
—Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
Cary Grant built a career on smirking suavity; Cate Blanchett has made an art form of falling apart with tragic intensity.
—Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
And Jules raises his hand, kind of smirking already.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 20 Sep. 2025
At the other end of the bar, Don was smirking as though looking forward to the lecture Odette was going to give Charlie.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Sep. 2025
Ideological skirmishes over the motives and obligations of Carpenter’s music include both sincere interrogation of its feminism and smirking counteractive reprisals to that scrutiny.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025
Colson replied with a photo of herself smirking while wearing a green jacket.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2025
New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
The Poets smirking at us in the garden, their coats blowing open like bat wings.
—Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025
Cary Grant built a career on smirking suavity; Cate Blanchett has made an art form of falling apart with tragic intensity.
—Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
And Jules raises his hand, kind of smirking already.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 20 Sep. 2025
At the other end of the bar, Don was smirking as though looking forward to the lecture Odette was going to give Charlie.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Sep. 2025
Ideological skirmishes over the motives and obligations of Carpenter’s music include both sincere interrogation of its feminism and smirking counteractive reprisals to that scrutiny.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025
Colson replied with a photo of herself smirking while wearing a green jacket.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smirking
Verb
-
Wentz was noticeably grimacing throughout the majority of the game.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
24 Oct. 2025
-
After taking a fastball on the knee in the fifth game of the series, outfield veteran George Springer returned to the starting lineup on Sunday and was noticeably limping and grimacing during his at-bats.—
Peter Chawaga,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Behind the glass doors of an unassuming building in Manhattan, staring across a shuttered print shop, a shadowy world stirred, coming alive with the flick of cards, the muted clink of glasses and the quiet hum of a dangerous secret.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Sean Monahan, Voronkov and others came up empty on point-blank opportunities that left them staring into the rafters or yelling at the ice in frustration.—
Aaron Portzline,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Now our favorite scowling friend is getting his own movie, too.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
15 Oct. 2025
-
In terms of my entry point to him, just understanding that this wasn’t a monster that was going to be scowling in the shadows and looking for any opportunity to hurt someone.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This was followed by a shot of them all pouting as Landon and Alabama flashed peace signs and their dad took his turn to flip off the camera.—
Hannah Sacks,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Grande unveiled her new (old) hair color in an October 29 Instagram post, pouting in a mirror selfie with her classic cat-eye makeup and cascading brown hair.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Smirking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smirking. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.
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