grimace
Americannoun
-
grimaces
plural
verb (used without object)
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grimaces,
present (3rd person singular)
-
grimaced,
past participle, past
-
grimacing
present participle
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
grimacesimple
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grimacessimple
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have grimacedperfect
-
has grimacedperfect
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am grimacingprogressive
-
are grimacingprogressive
-
is grimacingprogressive
-
have been grimacingperfect progressive
-
has been grimacingperfect progressive
Past
-
grimacedsimple
-
had grimacedperfect
-
was grimacingprogressive
-
were grimacingprogressive
-
had been grimacingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of grimace
First recorded in 1645–55; from French, ultimately from Frankish grima (unrecorded) “mask” ( cf. grim, grime) + -azo, from Latin -āceus -aceous
Explanation
The grimace on her face when he asked her to the prom told him her answer was "no" before she said a word. A grimace is a facial expression that usually suggests disgust or pain, but sometimes comic exaggeration. Picture someone wrinkling his nose, squeezing his eyes shut, and twisting his mouth and you'll have a pretty solid mental image of a grimace. It can be a verb, as in "the class grimaced at the teacher's suggestion of a pop quiz." Or it words as a noun. "The class gave a grimace when the teacher suggested a pop quiz." Its forerunner was the 17th century Spanish grimazo, meaning caricature, and grima, meaning fright.
Vocabulary lists containing grimace
The Outsiders
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Hatchet
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"The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Hilton Hafford, 68, said he was all for his local friend Jackson, but added with a grimace: "My sisters and brother are on the other side."
From Barron's ● Oct. 21, 2026
After her first vault, she landed with a grimace and fell, clutching her injured ankle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
For Americans who grimace at the thought of “big government,” this distanced Social Security from public assistance or welfare.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 30, 2026
He tried to look as shocked as the others when host Claudia Winkleman slammed Faith's coffin lid shut, but couldn't help a guilty grimace.
From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2026
Sigurd turned slowly, face curled into a furious grimace.
From Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack
Wizened and creased, with a hoop the size of a quarter dangling in his left ear, he relies on gestures—shrugs, grimaces, guffaws—to flesh out responses that lean terse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
He rolls his eyes at the town’s unquestioning belief in ghost stories and grimaces at all the visible evidence of how behind the times the town is.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026
Throughout baseball history, such collisions have been met mostly with grimaces and shrugs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2025
The nearly photorealistic face of Senua, the unconventional hero of this 10th-century revenge tale, as she grimaces with every sinew taut, her veins bulging.
From New York Times ● May 20, 2024
He accepted the ironic smiles of the owner of the house, Blanca’s grimaces, and the perennial distraction of Clara, who, even after a year, was still asking him his name.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
Stephen Street, a 63-year-old longtime San Franciscan and Marina resident, saw the mock-ups for the development and grimaced.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
The 77-year-old king grimaced in mock embarrassment as Trump turned to look at him, then waved as if to say carry on -- which Trump did.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
As the others grinned and grimaced at their rivals’ responses, Becerra was as stone-faced as Buster Keaton.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026
The only sign of discomfort he showed was when he grimaced and shook out his arm after returning one of Shelton's huge serves in the second set.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2025
Leon grimaced and lowered his voice, glancing over at me.
From "The Rock and the River" by Kekla Magoon
Just last week, the actress shared a mirror selfie in which she could be seen showing off her growing baby bump, pulling up her black shirt to flaunt her stomach, while grimacing at the camera.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
The Lakers were down by nine when Doncic departed, rubbing the back of his left thigh and grimacing in discomfort and clear frustration.
From Barron's ● Feb. 6, 2026
“Tiny little mic,” she said, grimacing at a recent premiere.
From Salon ● Jan. 11, 2026
Muchova, who began grimacing because of an issue with her left leg in the sixth game, called for the trainer and received medical attention off court.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2025
Benny Maestas growled and whistled; Sparky Pacheco bammed his palms against the window; Jimmy Ortega neighed; Betty Apodaca tugged her cheeks out with her fingers, grimacing and loudly clacking her teeth.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
