I. smile 1 S3 W1 /smaɪl/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Origin: Probably from a Scandinavian language ]
1 . [intransitive] to make your mouth curve upwards, in order to be friendly or because you are happy or amused
smile at
Susan smiled at him and waved.
She had to smile at his enthusiasm (=she was amused by it) .
her smiling face
smile about
I haven’t had much to smile about lately.
smile to yourself
Mark read the message and smiled to himself.
► You smile at someone. Do not say ‘smile to someone’.
2 . [transitive] to say or express something with a smile:
‘It’s good to have you back,’ she smiled.
3 . fortune/the gods etc smile on somebody especially literary if ↑ fortune , the gods etc smile on you, you have good luck
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ adverbs
▪ smile broadly (=very happily, with a wide smile)
He sat there smiling broadly.
▪ smile warmly (=in a friendly way)
The man looked at Kim and smiled warmly.
▪ smile faintly/slightly (=a little)
I saw her smile faintly at the memory.
▪ smile politely
I shook his hand and smiled politely.
▪ smile sweetly (=in a friendly way, sometimes not sincerely)
I smiled sweetly and walked away.
▪ smile ruefully written (=in a slightly sad way)
‘I’m sorry,’ she said, and smiled ruefully.
▪ smile wryly written (=when a situation is bad but also amusing)
Carew looked at the mess and smiled wryly to himself.
▪ smile thinly written (=a little, not in a happy or friendly way)
She smiled thinly. He would be sorry one day.
▪ smile weakly written (=without energy or confidence)
‘It’s OK,,’ she said, and smiled weakly.
▪ smile grimly written (=when pleased or amused in an unpleasant situation)
The guard smiled grimly.
■ verbs
▪ smile to yourself
Maggie looked at the photo and smiled to herself.
▪ make somebody smile
His comment made her smile.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ smile to make your mouth curve upwards, in order to be friendly or because you are happy or amused:
She smiled when she read his email.
|
‘I’m delighted to meet you,' George said, smiling at the girl.
▪ grin to give a big smile:
The two boys were grinning at each other.
|
The coach was grinning from ear to ear (=was grinning a lot) when the team scored.
▪ beam to give a big happy smile for a long time, because you are very pleased or proud:
She beamed with pride as her son collected the award.
|
The wedding couple were outside beaming at the camera.
▪ smirk to smile in an unpleasant way, for example because you are pleased about someone else’s bad luck or because you know something that someone else does not know:
The children smirked when the teacher dropped all the books on the floor.
|
What are you smirking about?
▪ simper disapproving written to smile in a silly and annoying way:
a group of simpering schoolgirls
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I hated the way she simpered every time a man spoke to her.
II. smile 2 S2 W2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
an expression in which your mouth curves upwards, when you are being friendly or are happy or amused:
He had a big smile on his face.
with a smile
‘Oh, I’m fine,’ Anna replied with a smile.
⇨ wipe the smile/grin off sb’s face at ↑ wipe 1 (7)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ give (somebody) a smile
The boy gave a friendly smile.
▪ flash (somebody) a smile (=give a quick smile)
She flashed him a smile.
▪ have a smile on your face/lips
They all had broad smiles on their faces.
▪ be all smiles (=be happy or friendly and smile a lot)
One moment he’s all smiles, the next moment he shouts at me.
▪ force/manage a smile (=smile when you do not really feel happy or friendly)
She forced a smile, but he could see disappointment in her face.
▪ wear a smile (=have a smile on your face)
She wore a self-confident smile.
▪ return sb’s smile (=smile back at someone)
I smiled at him, but he didn’t return my smile.
▪ somebody breaks into a smile/sb’s face breaks into a smile (=they suddenly smile)
Anna’s face broke into a smile at the prospect of a guest.
▪ a smile spreads across sb’s face (=they smile)
A faint smile spread across her face.
▪ sb’s smile broadens (=it gets bigger)
His smile broadened when Sarah walked in.
▪ sb’s smile fades/vanishes (=they stop smiling)
Her smile faded and a shaft of panic shot through her.
■ adjectives
▪ a big/broad/wide smile (=when you are very happy)
She had a big smile on her face.
▪ a warm/friendly smile
Peter Leary welcomed Rachel with a warm smile.
▪ a little/faint/slight smile
She gave him an apologetic little smile.
▪ a quick smile
She gave him a quick smile.
▪ a slow smile
A slow smile spread across his face.
▪ a dazzling smile (=a big smile which shows someone’s white teeth)
When he came back she gave him her most dazzling smile.
▪ a beaming/radiant smile (=when you are very happy)
‘I’m so pleased,’ she told him with a beaming smile.
▪ a bright smile written (=when you look very happy, but you may not feel happy)
She forced a bright smile.
▪ a tight smile written (=when you are not really happy or friendly)
As he stepped past Carson he gave a quick, tight smile of acknowledgement.
▪ a wry smile written (=when a situation is bad but also amusing)
Guy’s mouth twisted into a wry smile.
▪ a rueful smile written (=when you feel slightly sad)
‘I’ve been pretty stupid, haven’t I?’ Harry said with a rueful smile.
▪ a knowing smile (=when you know something secret)
She wanted to smack him for his knowing smile.
• • •
THESAURUS
■ different types of expression
▪ frown the expression on your face when you move your eyebrows together because you are angry, unhappy, or confused:
With a frown, she asked, ‘So what’s wrong with that?’
▪ smile an expression in which your mouth curves upwards, when you are being friendly or are happy or amused:
She gave him a quick smile.
▪ scowl an angry or disapproving expression:
There was a scowl of irritation on his face.
▪ glare a long angry look:
He gave her a furious glare, but said nothing.
▪ grimace an expression you make by twisting your face because you do not like something or because you are feeling pain:
His face twisted into a grimace of anguish.
▪ sneer an expression that shows you have no respect for something or someone:
‘That’s what you said last time,’ she said with a sneer.
▪ smirk an expression in which you smile in an unpleasant way that shows you are pleased by someone else’s bad luck or that you think you are better than other people:
He had a self-satisfied smirk on his face.
▪ pout an expression in which you push out your lower lip because you are unhappy that you did not get what you want:
‘You’re going away?’ she said with a pout.