STRAIGHT-FACED Synonyms: 86 Similar and Opposite Words

straight-faced

adjective

as in deadpan

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of straight-faced The clip began with a makeup-free Giudice sitting in the glam chair and gazing straight-faced into the camera while Reyna sized up the shot. — Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 21 Sep. 2026 Mamdani emerged from this shroud of mystery triumphant, posting a photograph on X of himself, firmly straight-faced, standing alongside the grinning President. — Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2026 The bill is presented, straight-faced, as securing election integrity. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 21 Feb. 2026 To which Liu responded, straight-faced and finally dead serious. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 20 Feb. 2026 But the rest of the movie is straight-faced, as though its story of two reckless sociopaths vying to destroy the world in their respective modes weren’t appallingly depressing. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for straight-faced

Adjective

Related On Chicken Shop Date, the English comedian sits down with celebrities for awkward, deadpan dates at chicken shops.

— Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 27 Sep. 2026
Reiter’s character’s brash self-assurance, along with her expressive face and physicality, really complement a deadpan Wickline.

— Rima Parikh, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of deadpan

Adjective

The 47-year-old, wearing a blue suit and blue tie, was expressionless as the charges against him were described.

— ABC News, ABC News, 19 May 2026
The routine calls for this chic, almost expressionless vibe — very different from a typical K-pop performance.

— Billboard Korea, Billboard, 26 Nov. 2025

Definition of expressionless

Adjective

Even the actors’ bodies exhibit the bland greige produced by the high dynamic range of digital cameras and are flattened by the inconsistent lighting that comes from overuse of green screens.

— Harmon Siegel, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
The doctor’s defense Throughout the trial, Kosowski sat quietly, watching witnesses and prosecutors with a bland expression.

— Natasha Holt, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of bland

Adjective

In places like the port city of Lazaro Cardenas, seawater swept through homes Thursday and left wooden planks and furniture strewn on the streets.

— MEGAN JANETSKY, Arkansas Online, 25 Sep. 2026
In the port city of Lázaro Cárdenas in Michoacán, seawater swept through homes and left wooden planks and furniture strewn on the streets.

— Eugene Garcia, Chicago Tribune, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of wooden

Adjective

This was about a hundred uniformed men and a few uniformed women, trained to be stoic warriors.

— Mabel Yiu, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Lizzie and Bridget’s Relationship in Monster The show quickly portrays a dynamic between Lizzie and Bridget, with Bridget’s brash, uninhibited manner drawing out the more reserved and stoic Lizzie.

— Chris Spargo, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of stoic

Adjective

That virtue is undermined here by leads with minimal chemistry, one of them inexpressive and the other archly theatrical, by design if not to rewarding effect.

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 21 May 2026
Moments of physical intimacy between his protagonists are often relayed in rigid and frustratingly inexpressive language, which occasionally veers into the tiringly smutty.

— Taran Dugal, New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2026

Definition of inexpressive

Adjective

Eco effort Water sufficiency—including water recycling for irrigation in their treatment plant—in a notoriously dry part of the island is a notable part of the resort’s sustainability efforts.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Oct. 2026
Explore See latest videos, charts and news Now entering its 22nd edition, the cooler-than-dry-ice bill also includes Slayyyter, ADÉLA, Kim Petras, MUNA, Ninajirachi and Rico Nasty.

— Lars Brandle, Billboard, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of dry

Adjective

Meanwhile, Leigh—intellectual, magnetic, and capricious—went to finishing school before marrying a stolid, stable lawyer named Herbert Leigh Holman in 1932.

— Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026
Leading the prosecution were Jennifer Sprague and Shanan Buckingham, a pair of stolid assistant district attorneys in structured suits and dark rectangular glasses.

— Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026