grin
be grinning from ear to ear
To be smiling broadly and enthusiastically. Tim was grinning from ear to ear when his bosses praised him during the ceremony.
See also: ear, grin
be grinning like a Cheshire cat
To be smiling smugly or mischievously. The term was popularized by the character in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I knew he had a prank planned for April Fools' Day when he arrived at work and was grinning like a Cheshire cat.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
coprophagous grin
A smug, self-satisfied, or overly pleased smile, especially one that (intentionally or unintentionally) irritates others. A humorous literalization of the phrase "shit-eating grin" (where coprophagia, or coprophagy, means the ingestion of feces). She's been walking around with that coprophagous grin on her face ever since she found out she got into Harvard.
See also: grin
fish-eating grin
A smug, self-satisfied, or overly pleased smile, especially one that (intentionally or unintentionally) irritates others. She's been walking around with that fish-eating grin on her face ever since she found out she got into Harvard.
See also: grin
grin and bear it
To endure an unpleasant situation while remaining somewhat good-natured. Well, a delayed flight isn't an ideal situation, but we'll just have to grin and bear it.
See also: and, bear, grin
grin at (someone or something)
1. To smile broadly at someone or something. I grinned at my dad when he suggested that we go out for ice cream. When I spotted Sophie across the street, I grinned at her and waved.
2. To smile broadly in reaction to something. Jane grinned at the thought of a second date with Greg.
See also: grin
grin from ear to ear
To have a broad, enthusiastic smile. Tim was grinning from ear to ear when his bosses praised him during the ceremony. The kids ran around the beach in a happy frenzy, both of them grinning from ear to ear.
See also: ear, grin
grin like a Cheshire cat
To smile smugly or mischievously. The term was popularized by the character in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. I knew he had a prank planned for April Fools' Day when he arrived at work grinning like a Cheshire cat.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
pie-eating grin
A smug, self-satisfied, or overly pleased smile, especially one that (intentionally or unintentionally) irritates others. She's been walking around with that pie-eating grin on her face ever since she found out she got into Harvard.
See also: grin
plastic grin
A forced, artificial smile; a smile someone wears despite having no feelings of happiness or joy. John seemed fine at first glance, but before long I could tell that he was wearing a plastic grin and that something was bothering him. Look at his big plastic grin—he's such a con man! I sure hope he doesn't win the election.
See also: grin, plastic
shit-eating grin
rude slang A facial expression denoting arrogance, smugness, or self-satisfaction. Primarily heard in US. I really wanted to wipe that shit-eating grin off his face after he won the poker game.
See also: grin
tin grin
slang The mouth of someone who has dental braces. Also used as a mocking nickname. I never used to smile for photos when I was in middle school because I hated the way my tin grin looked. Nice smile, tin grin! Don't get too close to any magnets, or you'll get stuck!
See also: grin, tin
wipe the/that grin off (one's) face
To stop smiling or appearing pleased; to do something that makes someone stop feeling happy, smug, or superior (about something). He can gloat all he wants, but this subpoena will wipe the grin off his face. Wipe that grin off your face, you little punk. You're going to pay for that!
See also: face, grin, off, that, wipe
wipe the/that smile off (one's) face
To stop smiling or appearing pleased. Often used in an aggressive imperative addressed to one who appears to be enjoying the frustration or annoyance they are causing the speaker. Wipe that smile off your face, you little punk. You're going to pay for that! He can gloat all he wants, but this subpoena will wipe the smile off his face.
See also: face, off, smile, that, wipe
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
grin and bear it
Fig. to endure something unpleasant in good humor. There is nothing you can do but grin and bear it. I hate having to work for rude people. I guess I have to grin and bear it.
See also: and, bear, grin
grin at someone or something
1. to smile a beaming smile at someone or something. The entire class grinned at the camera. I grinned at her and she turned away quickly. 2. to smile a beaming smile at the thought of, or mental picture of, someone or something. He grinned at the thought of his coming home to his family. He grinned at her as she gazed upon the diamond ring he had given her.
See also: grin
grin from ear to ear
Fig. to smile a very wide, beaming smile. She was grinning from ear to ear as she accepted the prize. We knew Timmy was happy because he was grinning from ear to ear.
See also: ear, grin
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
grin and bear it
Put up good-humoredly with adversity, with good humor, as in It's no fun being sick for the holidays, but you might as well grin and bear it. Also put as grin and abide in the 19th century, this expression became so well known that Sam Walter Foss (1858-1911) made a pun on it in his poem, "The Firm of Grin and Barrett": "Never yet was any panic Scared the firm of Grin and Barrett."
See also: and, bear, grin
grin like a Cheshire cat
Smile broadly, especially in a self-satisfied way. For example, John ended the set with a beautiful serve, an ace, and couldn't help grinning like a Cheshire cat . The ultimate origin of this expression, appearing in print since the late 1700s, is disputed, but its most famous exponent was Lewis Carroll, in whose Alice's Adventures in Wonderland the grinning cat gradually vanished from view, with its grin the last part to vanish.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
be grinning like a Cheshire cat
orbe smiling like a Cheshire cat
If someone is grinning like a Cheshire cat, or is smiling like a Cheshire cat, they are smiling broadly, usually in a foolish way. Standing on the door step and grinning like a Cheshire Cat was Bertie Owen. He came indoors, smiling like a Cheshire cat, expecting to be congratulated. Note: You can also say that someone has a Cheshire cat grin or a Cheshire cat smile. I complained, but Jennifer stood there with her Cheshire cat grin. A beaming Steve stood in the background, nodding his head up and down and wearing a Cheshire Cat smile on his face. Note: The Cheshire cat is a character from `Alice in Wonderland' (1865) by the English writer Lewis Carroll. This cat gradually disappears until only its huge smile remains. The idea for the character may have come from Cheshire cheese, which was made in the shape of a smiling cat. Alternatively, it may have come from hotel signs in Cheshire, UK, many of which had a picture of a smiling lion on them.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
be grinning from ear to ear
COMMON If you are grinning from ear to ear, you are smiling a lot and looking very happy. `I had a fantastic response,' he said, grinning from ear to ear. Note: Verbs such as smile and beam can be used instead of grin. McCarthy was beaming from ear to ear and his eyes were bright. Note: You can also say that someone has a grin from ear to ear or has a smile from ear to ear. I hadn't smiled so much in years. I had this grin from ear to ear. Note: You can use ear-to-ear before nouns such as grin and smile. All around him were more ear-to-ear grins than I have seen before.
See also: ear, grin
grin and bear it
If you grin and bear it, you accept or tolerate something bad, such as a problem or a pain, because you believe you cannot change it. In the past, a royal trapped in a loveless marriage would have been obliged to grin and bear it. Severe or recurrent abdominal pain should always be checked. Don't just grin and bear it.
See also: and, bear, grin
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.
grin like a Cheshire cat
have a broad fixed smile on your face.The Cheshire cat with its broad grin is best known for its appearance (and disappearance) in Lewis Carroll 's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ( 1865 ), but the expression, which is of uncertain origin, is recorded from the first half of the 19th century.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
grin and bear it
suffer pain or misfortune in a stoical manner.The usual modern sense of grin is less sinister than its earliest senses: when it entered the language it primarily meant ‘an act of showing the teeth’ or ‘a snarl’. From the mid 17th century to the mid 18th century, a grin was generally used in a derogatory way or in unfavourable contrast to a cheerful smile . The sense of grin in grin and bear it retains the earlier associations with showing your teeth in a grimace of pain or anger. Grin and abide is recorded as a proverb in the late 18th century; the modern version dates from the late 19th century.
See also: and, bear, grin
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
beam/grin/smile from ear to ˈear
be smiling, etc. a lot because you are very pleased about something: I like your graduation photo, with you grinning from ear to ear and your parents looking so proud.See also: beam, ear, grin, smile
grin and ˈbear it
(informal) (only used as an infinitive and in orders) accept something unpleasant without complaining: If the trip is a disaster, you’ll just have to grin and bear it.See also: and, bear, grin
grin like a Cheshire ˈcat
smile widely in a foolish way or as if you are very pleased with yourself: She sat there grinning like a Cheshire cat while we tried to put the tent up.The Cheshire Cat is a character in Lewis Carroll’s story, Alice in Wonderland.See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
wipe the/that ˈsmile, ˈgrin, etc. off your/somebody’s face
(informal)1 used to tell somebody to stop smiling, etc. because it is annoying or not appropriate: Wipe that smile off your face or I’ll send you out of the classroom.
2 make somebody feel less happy or satisfied with something: The news from the stock market soon wiped the smile off his face.
See also: face, off, that, wipe
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary
big fat grin
and BFG phr. & comp. abb. I’m smiling while I write this. Just kidding! BFG.
See also: big, fat, grin
tin grin
n. a smile with a mouth having braces. I’ll be glad when I get rid of this tin grin.
See also: grin, tin
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
grin and bear it
Put up with adversity with good humor. This expression originated as grin and abide. It so appears in Erasmus Darwin’s Zoonomia (1794), “We have a proverb where no help could be had in pain, ‘to grin and abide,’” so it presumably was a well-known saying by then. A few years earlier W. Hickey wrote in his Memoirs (1775), “I recommend you to grin and bear it (an expression used by sailors after a long continuance of bad weather).” It has been a cliché for about a hundred years, well known enough for poet Sam Walter Foss (1858–1911) to pun on it in his The Firm of Grin and Barrett (“Never yet has any panic scared the firm of Grin and Barrett”).
See also: and, bear, grin
grin like a Cheshire cat
To smile broadly. The origin of this expression, which was well known in the eighteenth century, has been lost. Most explanations involve the traditional Cheshire County cheese, sold in the shape of a wheel and, perhaps, once so molded that it resembled a cat’s grinning face. Another theory holds that it refers to a Cheshire forest ranger named Caterling who frightened off poachers with his fierce grin. At any rate, the term has been appearing in print since the late 1700s in the works of such writers as William Thackeray and Charles Lamb, as well as in the work of its most famous exponent, Lewis Carroll.
See also: cat, Cheshire, grin, like
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- be grinning from ear to ear
- beam/grin/smile from ear to ear
- grin from ear to ear
- smile from ear to ear
- have (one's) ear
- have somebody's ear
- have someone's ear
- have the ear of (one)
- have the ear of someone
- a box on the ear