grinned; grinning
: to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in amusement or laughter
grinner
noun
plural grins
: a facial expression produced by grinning especially in pleasure or amusement
a happy grin
She grew into a nimble young girl of seven winters, a thoughtful girl with shining brown eyes and a wide grin …—
Louise Erdrich
Louise ErdrichI wanted to wipe the grin off his face [=make him stop smiling.]
Synonyms
Examples of grin in a Sentence
Verb
She continued to tease her brother, grinning wickedly.
grinned at the kids' fooling around in the pool
Recent Examples on the WebWill Henshall, TIME, 6 June 2024
The East Coast writer posted a photo of the former Food Network star, who lives in Los Angeles, grinning ear-to-ear while standing next to the Hudson River.
—Antonia Debianchi, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024
Nancy Kruh, Peoplemag, 28 May 2024
After the House vote in April, Congressman Bill Pascrell (D., N.J.) circulated a picture of himself, wearing a Ukrainian flag and a grin, and giving a thumbs-up.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 20 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for grin 
Verb
Raimondo grins at the three officials around the table.
—Will Henshall, TIME, 6 June 2024
The East Coast writer posted a photo of the former Food Network star, who lives in Los Angeles, grinning ear-to-ear while standing next to the Hudson River.
—Antonia Debianchi, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024
Noun
Afterward, Chapel accepted his congratulations with a shrug and a wisp of a grin.
—Nancy Kruh, Peoplemag, 28 May 2024
After the House vote in April, Congressman Bill Pascrell (D., N.J.) circulated a picture of himself, wearing a Ukrainian flag and a grin, and giving a thumbs-up.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 20 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for grin
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'grin.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near grin
Cite this Entry
“Grin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grin. Accessed 12 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
grin
verb
grinned; grinning
: to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in laughter
grin
noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share