poker face

See synonyms for: poker%20facepoker-facedpokerfaced on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. an expressionless face: He can tell a funny story with a poker face.

  2. a person who has or deliberately assumes a poker face: It is impossible to tell what that poker face is really thinking.

Origin of poker face

1
An Americanism dating back to 1880–85

Other words from poker face

  • poker-faced, adjective

Words Nearby poker face

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use poker face in a sentence

  • They all had the beat look of compulsive gamblers, fogged over by their individual attempts at a poker face.

    Card Trick | Walter Bupp AKA Randall Garrett
  • "Jest born that way, I reckon," remarked Poker-face in a tone of pity; and then the whole outfit broke into a whoop of laughter.

    Bat Wing Bowles | Dane Coolidge
  • First he looked into the eyes of poker face the Baboon and saw something faraway.

    Rootabaga Stories | Carl Sandburg
  • He closed it quickly, glanced across at the banker, saw equal bewilderment on that usually poker-face.

    Reel Life Films | Samuel Kimball Merwin
  • "No," poker face answered, to a sharp question from the persistent Carson.

    Judith of Blue Lake Ranch | Jackson Gregory

British Dictionary definitions for poker face

poker face

noun
  1. informal a face without expression, as that of a poker player attempting to conceal the value of his cards

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with poker face

poker face

A visage lacking any expression that can be interpreted, as in Whenever Betty attended one of her children's performances, she managed to keep a poker face. This term alludes to the facial expression of a poker player who is expert at concealing his feelings about his hand. [c. 1880]

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.