mien
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of mien
1505–15; probably aphetic variant of obsolete demean bearing, demean 2; spelled with -ie- to distinguish it from mean 2
Explanation
Your mien is how you present yourself, the impression you make. It's best to keep a low profile but a dignified mien. The source of the word mien is not completely clear, but it does involve a French word for "facial expression." A person's mien is a look or quality that tells a lot about their personalities or temperaments. A person with a cheerful mien probably radiates happiness and energy, while someone with a serious mien may have an air of being lost in thought.
Vocabulary lists containing mien
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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.
Squinting in the morning sun, she had bat ears, a downturned mouth and the mien of a pissed-off mother-in-law.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 28, 2025
In his cratered and ravaged mien we see the impress of time, yet also dignity and fortitude.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 22, 2025
Schaeffer, who has the mien of Marine drill instructor, is animated and intense.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 5, 2025
Instead, the carefully prepared Cohen was subdued and succinct, admitting his lies and misdeeds in service of Donald Trump with a sorrowful mien.
From Salon • May 15, 2024
Her mien wavered from severe, when she watched the men loading the wagons, to smiling when she spoke with a girl standing nearby.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
