grin

1 of 2

verb

grinned; grinning

intransitive verb

: to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in amusement or laughter
broadly : smile
grinning from ear to ear
grinner noun
grinningly adverb

grin

2 of 2

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 grinLouise Erdrich
I wanted to wipe the grin off his face [=make him stop smiling.]

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 Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
The bottom line: Asked if he's seen any indication yet that Trump is willing to meet him halfway in finding common ground, Suozzi grinned. Andrew Solender, Axios, 22 Jan. 2025 Remigio, when recalling the exchange, remembered that Toub laughed and grinned, hugging him before playfully giving him a shove. Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 20 Jan. 2025
Noun
The associate principal clarinetist, Ben Adler, led the opening upward squeal with exultant sassiness, setting the tone for a high-spirited romp that brought grins to the faces of many onstage. Corinna Da Fonseca-Wollheim, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025 Yamal celebrated his goal with a beaming grin, showing off some sparkling bespoke braces on his teeth to a furious Bernabeu crowd. Pol Ballús, The Athletic, 21 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for grin 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English grennen, from Old English grennian; akin to Old High German grennen to snarl

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1565, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of grin was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near grin

Cite this Entry

“Grin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grin. Accessed 3 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

grin

verb
grinned; grinning
: to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in laughter
grin noun

More from Merriam-Webster on grin

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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