plastic 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
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
See also:
  • plastic
  • plastic smile
  • raise a smile
  • wear nothing but a smile
  • wearing a smile
  • wearing nothing but a smile
  • smile at
  • smile at (one)
  • cheese
  • cheese (someone or something)
References in periodicals archive
Labour's sudden lack of confidence leaves it struggling to counter Cameron's plastic grin.
A cash machine flashes that colourful plastic grin as it invites them to add to that student loan debt, no doubt charging something in the order of pounds 2.50.
It is a sculpture, 100 inches tall, of a kind of bunny, wearing a plastic grin of self-approval.
The extrusion method was recently suggested to produce plastic GRIN fibers using diffusional characteristics of low molecular weight materials (17, 18).
Several polymer systems have been investigated to test polymer-polymer miscibility for fabrication of plastic GRIN material.
Yet in the space of 80 minutes the smug smile disappeared, leaving me to welcome jubilant visitors with a plastic grin. I dread to think ahead to theWorld Cup.
The stationary dodgems nearby yawn at the flashing lights overhead, while Bugs Bunny maintains his plastic grin as he waits for a youngster to hop next to him for a 50p ride in his car.
Nothing so much as resembling genuine emotion occurs in "The Brothers Solomon" (Arnett and Forte specialize in fake tears and plastic grins), placing this comedy in a far different class from this summer's earlier childbirth comedy, "Knocked Up."
The plastic grins, the tired dance routines, the loss of magic, the elderly producers, the interchangeable young bodies - these things tyrannise pop music today.
(help!), trapped within gigantic pantomime costumes, whose fixed plastic grins belied the irreversible brain damage taking place within, as they failed to elude 100-kilo sandbags hurled at their heads by good- natured opponents.