as in grimaces
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 smirks
Literary Hub, 24 Feb. 2026
Cruz then smirks as the officers detaining her place her on the hood of a vehicle.
—Alex Nitzberg, FOXNews.com, 16 Jan. 2026
Glinda, with a white cardigan draped over her head, leans in to whisper something to Elphaba, who smirks.
—People Staff, PEOPLE, 21 Nov. 2025
Through it all, Stanley smirks, Criss chuckles, and Simmons maintains his dour demeanor.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2025
Whereas most guests on With Love, Meghan would respond to a prompt like this with doe-eyed enthusiasm, Daniel simply smirks and shakes his head.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2025
Verb
Camille smirks into her wine, feigning terror but secretly gleeful at the display.
—Literary Hub, 24 Feb. 2026
Cruz then smirks as the officers detaining her place her on the hood of a vehicle.
—Alex Nitzberg, FOXNews.com, 16 Jan. 2026
Glinda, with a white cardigan draped over her head, leans in to whisper something to Elphaba, who smirks.
—People Staff, PEOPLE, 21 Nov. 2025
Through it all, Stanley smirks, Criss chuckles, and Simmons maintains his dour demeanor.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2025
Whereas most guests on With Love, Meghan would respond to a prompt like this with doe-eyed enthusiasm, Daniel simply smirks and shakes his head.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smirks
Verb
-
Chee grimaces in pain from his ghost sickness wounds, and Manuelito notices.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
There were snickers from some of the other students, including a tall and lank-haired kid whose name Adele didn’t know.—
Jonathan Franzen,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
-
The event also had free opportunities to take photos, get ice cream snickers and have earned a Super Bowl post card.—
Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
Updated February 5,
Sacbee.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The first photo of the two-slide carousel shows Prince Harry holding Lilibet in his arms while Meghan, her arm on her husband, stares lovingly at her daughter.—
Rachel Burchfield,
InStyle,
4 June 2026
-
But while no incriminating data or embarrassing details accompany the couple's profile, Duncan stares at their pictures as if he's seen a ghost.—
Matt Cabral,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
However, there has been a growing edge to Denver’s current group, personified on the field in the way safety Talanoa Hufanga flies to the ball and in the way Cooper scowls under his eye black.—
Nick Kosmider,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
-
How often do smiles express happiness and scowls express anger?—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
27 Mar. 2020
Verb
-
Don’t Kill Reach with External Links Like any business that makes money from advertising, LinkedIn frowns upon directing people away from LinkedIn to another site.—
William Arruda,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
-
Here is our review of a 2025-26 campaign that’s ended with more smiles than frowns.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
26 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Smirks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smirks. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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