as in smiling
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as in laughing
to express an emotion (as amusement) by curving the lips upward
grinned at the kids' fooling around in the pool
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of grinning
Alice Gregory, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Feb. 2026
Four minutes into Bad Bunny’s halftime show during the Super Bowl, the camera panned over two rows of grinning string players.
—Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
Barack and Michelle Obama were depicted as grinning, dancing apes.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 6 Feb. 2026
One of the defining images of this Super Bowl run for Patriots fans will be a bloodied Vrabel, grinning after a celebratory headbutt from Milton Williams after a fourth-down sack that sealed a wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
—Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 5 Feb. 2026
The room sighs in relief a second later when Buckley reanimates, jerking and flailing like a soul possessed, grinning maniacally — all on purpose, inspired by the earlier veil snafu.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Feb. 2026
Epstein can be seen grinning during their conversation.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
The accompanying grid post captures Styles grinning in the studio.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 20 Jan. 2026
Weiss and Bowles were photographed grinning in sleek black suits.
—Clare Malone, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
Verb
Processions of awestruck people from all over the world—selfie-taking women in saris, chatty Mexican children, grinning Hare Krishna—marched along a paved path, heads craned upward toward the water.
—Alice Gregory, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Feb. 2026
Four minutes into Bad Bunny’s halftime show during the Super Bowl, the camera panned over two rows of grinning string players.
—Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
Barack and Michelle Obama were depicted as grinning, dancing apes.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 6 Feb. 2026
One of the defining images of this Super Bowl run for Patriots fans will be a bloodied Vrabel, grinning after a celebratory headbutt from Milton Williams after a fourth-down sack that sealed a wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
—Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 5 Feb. 2026
The room sighs in relief a second later when Buckley reanimates, jerking and flailing like a soul possessed, grinning maniacally — all on purpose, inspired by the earlier veil snafu.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Feb. 2026
Epstein can be seen grinning during their conversation.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
The accompanying grid post captures Styles grinning in the studio.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 20 Jan. 2026
Weiss and Bowles were photographed grinning in sleek black suits.
—Clare Malone, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grinning
Adjective
-
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
Verb
-
Even in ordinary moments—sharing tea, splitting food, laughing in the snow, dancing at weddings—Minnesota feels alive.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Buck became accustomed to the smells of booze and smoke, of falling asleep to the sound of adults laughing.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Grinning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grinning. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.
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