deadpan
Americanadjective
-
marked by or accomplished with a careful pretense of seriousness or calm detachment; impassive or expressionless.
deadpan humor.
-
displaying no emotional or personal involvement.
a deadpan style.
adverb
verb (used with or without object)
noun
-
a face showing no expression.
-
a style of comedy that relies on the comedian's maintaining such a face.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deadpan
An Americanism dating back to 1925–30; dead + pan 1 (in the slang sense “face”)
Explanation
Use the word deadpan to describe someone who uses no expression when speaking, such as the deadpan way some comedians deliver even their funniest jokes — which can make them even funnier. Deadpan dates to 1928, when pan was slang for "face." So if you seem to have a "dead face" as you say something, it means your face looks very blank — no energy or animation. Deadpan is associated with sarcasm, and like sarcasm, if you use it for comic effect, there's a risk your audience won't pick up on it. Nevertheless, deadpan humor can be funny and popular — witness the success of deadpan humor in the sitcom Seinfeld.
Vocabulary lists containing deadpan
The Hate U Give
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The Egypt Game
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Every Day
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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:
He arrives at election counts wearing a metallic dustbin-shaped helmet, a silver cape and silver-and-black armour and brandishing his razor-sharp, deadpan sense of humour.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
With the Deep’s deadpan delivery, for instance, Crawford felt free to lean into his natural comedic timing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026
Townsend was particularly deadpan on Thursday and no wonder.
From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2026
At the center of it is Curt Cignetti, the deadpan coaching lifer who took a flier on Bloomington in 2023, told Hoosier Nation he wins wherever he goes —“Google me”—and went out and did it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
“I’ve been really busy,” I say, my voice deadpan.
From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy
As I fended off allegations of greatness, Yang deadpanned: “Chicken is 75% luck. The tile gods were on your side.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
“It’s part of our job now,” she deadpanned.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
“The award for Most Editing goes to CBS News,” she deadpanned.
From Salon ● Jan. 12, 2026
He deadpanned that he doesn’t think the exercise helps.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2025
“All right,” he said, and then deadpanned, “but we don’t get along very well.”
From "Looking for Alaska" by John Green
He got more lighthearted as the band settled in, tussling with Louis Tomlinson in onstage water fights and deadpanning in a banana costume on a European tour.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2024
Statham ... remains unflappable, which is why he charms as he disarms with his patented deadpanning and action moves.
From Salon ● Mar. 3, 2023
She adopted a strategy early in life of simply deadpanning, “I am smiling.”
From Washington Post ● May 22, 2021
After six seasons swilling whiskey and deadpanning, the sweater-wearing title character of this animated Hollywood satire is putting down the reins.
From New York Times ● Jan. 31, 2020
Yogi relented, deadpanning, “O.K., fine, make it like mine.”
From The New Yorker ● Sep. 16, 2019
Definitions 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.
