moue

American  

[moo] / mu /

noun

plural

moues

1. a pouting grimace.

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moue British  

/ mu /

noun

1. a disdainful or pouting look

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Etymology

Origin of moue

First recorded in 1845–50; from French; Old French moe; see mow ³

Explanation

A moue is a grimace you make with your lips. If you make this expression, you're usually showing distaste, petulance, or a similar emotion. Moue is also used, however, to refer to a flirtatious pout. The word moue is pronounced "moo," like the sound a cow makes, although the origin of the word has nothing to do with cows. Instead, the noun moue comes from the Middle Dutch word mouwe, which meant a protruding lip. You can make a moue of displeasure when someone steals your parking spot or give a coy moue when you're trying to get away with something. Either way, you're pouting.

Example Sentences

Her sleepy, bedroom gaze, articulated by the swoop of her liquid eyeliner; her bright red moue; and that beauty mark were the star’s own creations, conceived with her longtime West Coast-based makeup artist, Whitey Snyder.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2024

Harper is haunted, and Buckley conveys her anxiety with wide, darting eyes, or twisting her mouth in a moue.

From Salon • May 20, 2022

Its single eye has clearly seen something no mortal eyes were meant to see, and the little moue of its mouth makes it clear that it liked it.

From Slate • Aug. 6, 2021

What is beyond doubt is the scheming suavity with which Huppert arms her character; seldom has the famous French moue been put to such withering use.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 13, 2016

Here Dad would stop long enough to give his version of a depreciating moue, and hide his face coyly behind an upraised elbow.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey