keep a straight face
idiom
: to not smile or laugh
It was hard to keep a straight face with everyone else laughing.
Examples of keep a straight face in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Leadership is often associated with qualities like decisiveness, resilience and the ability to keep a straight face during a never-ending Zoom call.
—
Cheryl Robinson, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
Where Colin could keep a straight face and do the read, Che often stepped on his reads with laughter and/or a cheap (even if genuine) level of discomfort that kind of negates the risk factor.
—Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 10 Feb. 2025
The objective: Be the last person at the table to keep a straight face—which meant dinnertime was essentially a comedy workshop.
—Maggie McGrath, Forbes, 9 Feb. 2025
That Walken is able to keep a straight face while everyone else is breaking, including consummate professional Will Ferrell, is a feat that very few hosts could pull off.
—Shannon Carlin, TIME, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for keep a straight face
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Cheryl Robinson, Forbes, 9 Mar. 2025
Where Colin could keep a straight face and do the read, Che often stepped on his reads with laughter and/or a cheap (even if genuine) level of discomfort that kind of negates the risk factor.
—Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 10 Feb. 2025
The objective: Be the last person at the table to keep a straight face—which meant dinnertime was essentially a comedy workshop.
—Maggie McGrath, Forbes, 9 Feb. 2025
That Walken is able to keep a straight face while everyone else is breaking, including consummate professional Will Ferrell, is a feat that very few hosts could pull off.
—Shannon Carlin, TIME, 15 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for keep a straight face
Cite this Entry
“Keep a straight face.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/keep%20a%20straight%20face. Accessed 18 Mar. 2025.
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