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.]
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
Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2025
One of our last photos of him was taken inside that diner, grinning at us over an orange coffee cup.
—Gwen Rockwood, Arkansas Online, 15 May 2025
Lindsay Schnell, New York Times, 29 May 2025
Just look at those big floppy ears and toothy grin, those Tasmanian Devil-meets-Hula dancer moves, and try to keep a straight face.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for grin
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Verb
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, one of the top passers in NFL history, grinned broadly when asked about playing flag football in the Olympics.
—Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 29 May 2025
One of our last photos of him was taken inside that diner, grinning at us over an orange coffee cup.
—Gwen Rockwood, Arkansas Online, 15 May 2025
Noun
Neville can barely talk about success — his and his team’s — without breaking into a grin and marveling at how much better things are not just for him, but for them.
—Lindsay Schnell, New York Times, 29 May 2025
Just look at those big floppy ears and toothy grin, those Tasmanian Devil-meets-Hula dancer moves, and try to keep a straight face.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 21 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for grin
Cite this Entry
“Grin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grin. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
grin
verb
grinned; grinning
: to draw back the lips so as to show the teeth especially in laughter
grin
noun
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