straight face

noun

1. a serious or impassive facial expression that conceals one's true feelings about something, especially a desire to laugh.

straight face

noun

1. a serious facial expression, esp one that conceals the impulse to laugh

Other Word Forms

• straight-faced adjective
• straight-facedly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of straight face¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Idioms and Phrases

see keep a straight face.

Example Sentences

Played with a straight face, “Weapons” could ignite major, necessary conversations about the fear parents have of sending their children to school and the long-term ramifications of unfathomable violence.

From Salon

Paltrow keeps a straight face while gently steering the narrative back to Astronomer’s actual product: data pipeline orchestration.

From Salon

"I think looseheads around the globe are quite weird people," he said, again with a straight face.

From BBC

It was very difficult to keep a straight face because we just played it as seriously as we could, and we’re like, “Should we make a procedural crime show? I think we might have to.”

From Los Angeles Times

The majority kept a straight face while they said that the D.C.

From Salon