smiley

[ smahy-lee ]

/ ˈsmaɪ li /

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See synonyms for smiley on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural smil·eys.Also called smiley face .

a digital icon, a sequence of keyboard symbols, or a handwritten or printed equivalent, that serves to represent a facial expression, as :‐) for a smiling face or ;‐) for a winking face.Compare emoticon.

Usually smile face . a drawing of a face consisting of a usually yellow circle with an upturned curve for a smile and two dots for eyes.

adjective

cheerful; smiling.

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of smiley

1985–90

Words nearby smiley

smilacaceous, smilax, smile, smile on, Smiles, smiley, smilodon, smir, smirch, smirk, smirting

Other definitions for smiley (2 of 2)

Smiley

[ smahy-lee ]

/ ˈsmaɪ li /

noun

Jane, born 1949, U.S. novelist.

How to use smiley in a sentence

In their wet swimsuits and dripping hair, they castigate her, with a great deal of smiley passive-aggression, for not responding to the group chat.
Bodies Bodies Bodies Updates the Old-School Slasher Formula and Ends on a High Note|Stephanie Zacharek|August 5, 2022|Time
The first one came punctuated with a smiley face, as though the dissident were still adding emojis to the blog that started his political career.
The Man Putin Fears|Simon Shuster|January 19, 2022|Time
He included an emoji of a smiley face spouting tears of laughter.
Glenn Greenwald may have quit the Intercept, but he can’t quit the feud|Paul Farhi|May 21, 2021|Washington Post
In a guest book outside the door, Greene writes “You’re a traitor,” accompanied by a smiley face.
Marjorie Taylor Greene’s years-long campaign to disparage and attack Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez|Philip Bump|May 14, 2021|Washington Post

That’s totally different from basic smiley face emoji, for example.
The woman who will decide what emoji we get to use|Tanya Basu|May 11, 2021|MIT Technology Review
Tavis Smiley, the PBS talk show host and close friend to Cornel West, often credits West with having a “useable intellect.”
Cornel West’s Disappointing Decline|David Masciotra|October 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Smiley, meanwhile, tried to tamp down fears by comparing the Ebola outbreak to the SARS outbreak of 2003.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: October 19|PunditFact.com|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Tavis Smiley criticized the media for Ebola fear-mongering, and George Will claimed the virus could spread through the air.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: October 19|PunditFact.com|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Smiley is a PBS talk show host who has written several previous books about the African-American experience.
Tavis Smiley Humanely Chronicles MLK’s Sad Last Year|Scott Porch|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley Lear gave away his kingdom.
Book Bag: 5 Novels Shakespeare Sort of Wrote|Lois Leveen|October 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is where the stranger says to Smiley, "I don't see no p'ints about that frog that's any better'n any other frog."
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, Complete|Albert Bigelow Paine
And you—why should you be going to expense, and knocking out things that costs money, because Mother Smiley's coming?
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope
If she could get him to swallow some hot food before Mrs. Smiley came, all might yet be well.
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope
He was thinking of Miriam Usbech as she was twenty years ago, and of Mrs. Smiley as she appeared at present.
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope
He was considered to have made his offer, and Mrs. Smiley thereupon formally accepted him.
Orley Farm|Anthony Trollope

British Dictionary definitions for smiley

smiley

/ (ˈsmaɪlɪ) /

adjective

given to smiling; cheerful

depicting a smilea smiley badge

noun

any of a group of symbols depicting a smile, or other facial expression, used in electronic mail

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