grin
1 Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
-
a broad smile.
-
the act of producing a broad smile.
-
the act of withdrawing the lips and showing the teeth, as in anger or pain.
noun
verb (used with object)
verb
-
to smile with the lips drawn back revealing the teeth or express (something) by such a smile
to grin a welcome
-
(intr) to draw back the lips revealing the teeth, as in a snarl or grimace
-
informal to suffer trouble or hardship without complaint
noun
-
a broad smile
-
a snarl or grimace
Synonym Usage
See laugh.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of grin1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English grinnen, grennen, Old English grennian; cognate with Old High German grennan “to mutter”
Origin of grin2
First recorded before 900; Middle English grin(e), grinne, Old English grin, gryn
Explanation
When you grin, you smile. You're likely to grin when your sister tells you a particularly funny knock-knock joke. There's some disagreement about the difference between a grin and a smile — some define a grin as a broad smile that exposes your teeth, but others consider a grin to be a smile with lips tightly closed. Either way, a grin usually expresses amusement, although it sometimes has a mischievous or sly implication: "No one confessed to letting the rabbit loose in the classroom, but one student's grin gave her away."
Vocabulary lists containing grin
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:
Those who have dealt with Diamantis describe an affable man with a toothy grin who can also be domineering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
"Pair density waves are the Cheshire Cat's grin of superconductivity," said Eduardo Fradkin, an Illinois Grainger Engineering physics professor and a project co-lead.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
He looked startled for a moment and then with an uncharacteristic grin replied that he considered that a welcome compliment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
When I mention this paradox, a grin spreads across his face.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
“I suppose that’s what we’re for,” I said, pulling out a grin.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Smith denied this, and Schmitt grinned as if he’d just effectively locked Smith in jail forever on perjury charges.
From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026
When Tinfow found himself at a loss for words, she grinned.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
Goodell grinned and replied, “I really don’t know the answer to that one. If she’s interested, she has the ability to do it, let’s put it that way.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
Still dressed in his black suit from the red carpet, the star ate with his award sitting on the table and grinned as he signed paper hats for staff.
From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2026
He grinned when this comment sent Briggs into a new wave of laughter.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
“I’m optimistic,” Hunt said, grinning as he prepped for his next leg.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026
Jumping down from her uncle's shoulders, seven-year-old Dona ran grinning to her mother after Pope Leo XIV waved at her on his way past on a famed Paris avenue.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
The storyline is inscrutable, but Walters displays real range, gazing forlornly in the rain, hurling dishes at a wall, grinning and giving high-fives when a family takes him bowling.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Armed with the above ad and welcomed by a grinning private guard calling, “Here bunny, bunny, bunny!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
From the hall leading to the courtyard, the Wolf King walked into the room in his human form, grinning his wolfish grin.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
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.
