My friend sent me this email:

is there a word for the opposite of smile?  "She was frowning" does not convey sadness.

Anyone?

[quote author=tamisaac link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#0 date=10/20/02 at 22:18:25]My friend sent me this email:

is there a word for the opposite of smile?  "She was frowning" does not convey sadness.

Anyone?

Downcast?  Depressed?  Dejected?  "She was downcast."  "She was depressed."  "She was dejected."

sad  . . . 1 a : affected with or expressive of grief or unhappiness : DOWNCAST b (1) : causing or associated with grief or unhappiness : DEPRESSING

downcast . . . 1 : low in spirit : DEJECTED

[sup]2[/sup]deject . . . : to make gloomy . . .

dejected . . . 1 : cast down in spirits : DEPRESSED

depressed . . . 1 : low in spirits : SAD; especially : affected by psychological depression . . .

[quote author=Stargzer link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#1 date=10/20/02 at 23:35:17]
Downcast?  Depressed?  Dejected?  "She was downcast."  "She was depressed."  "She was dejected."

She’s writing a scene in which she’s avoiding stating the emotions, and only showing them through action.  Would you take another shot at it?

I think she’s going to have to walk around it and say:
"She assumes a downcast expression."

Grant

My friend had considered "her mouth drooped," but that seemed cliched.

She had a downcast (or dejected) look on her face.

Even unsmilingly can convey different emotions:  sadness, anger, even no expression at all.

If it’s the opposite of happy you want, you may be stuck with emotions instead of expressions.

yDc’s Thesaurus gives unhappy and disconsolate as the antonyms of happy.  It gives the antonym of smile as frown, which of course may not convey sadness.

She had a doleful/dolorous or cheerless look upon her face.

Tough assignment!

I may not have this quote exactly, but it fits this situation:

"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is like the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.

   —Mark Twain

Frown seems perfectly descriptive.

Glower?  Lower?

Brad

Her goal is to write a scene in which no emotions are explicitly mentioned, but rather shown through action.  "She frowned" does not convey sadness in this respect.  Frowning can be a sign of contemplation, disapproval, and other emotions as well.  "Her mouth wilted" was as close as I could get without resorting to cliches like "her mouth drooped" or "the corners of her mouth sagged."

If the impression is required that the person looked sad, why not use "she looked sad".  Direct, effective, unambiguous and clear proof that I’ll never be a novelist.

Given that a grin is a species of smile, is there a wider, toothier version of "frown"?

Slightly off track, but one of my daughters at an early age coined the word "frowl" - this is a combination of a frown and a scowl.

[quote author=DerekB link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#8 date=10/22/02 at 11:40:02](O)ne of my daughters at an early age coined the word "frowl" - this is a combination of a frown and a scowl.

. . . and a growl.

The MW gives gives scoul, pout, and sulk among other less hopeful synonyms.

"Unsmiling"  ;)

[quote author=tamisaac link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#7 date=10/22/02 at 11:13:55]Her goal is to write a scene in which no emotions are explicitly mentioned, but rather shown through action.  "She frowned" does not convey sadness in this respect.  Frowning can be a sign of contemplation, disapproval, and other emotions as well.  "Her mouth wilted" was as close as I could get without resorting to cliches like "her mouth drooped" or "the corners of her mouth sagged."

Well, non-verbal behaviors are all inherently ambiguous.  While a smile is decoded fairly universally across cultures, there still are many situations when people smile and aren’t necessarily happy.  They can be embarrassed, amused, uncomfortable, etc.  (This subject is on my mind since I taught a section on non-verbal communication this week and we spent a good deal of time on facial expressions.)

Here’s a related site for a bit of fun: Eric Conveys An Emotion

[quote author=Brad Ross-MacLeod link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#12 date=10/25/02 at 10:35:56]
Here’s a related site for a bit of fun: Eric Conveys An Emotion

That is too funny. :D (Not good to be ROFL when you boss walks in the room.) :-X

[quote author=Brad Ross-MacLeod link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#12 date=10/25/02 at 10:35:56]

Here’s a related site for a bit of fun: Eric Conveys An Emotion

My husband and I should be working, but keep peeking back to check another emotion, and then we’re choking with laughter… Great site!  

Let’s see- what would the emotion of "After hours hanging out at the Agora" look like?     ;D

And Brad—what do we have under your name, in the little box of Brad Displays an Emotion?

[quote author=tamisaac link=board=what;num=1035166705;start=0#14 date=10/25/02 at 13:04:41]
My husband and I should be working, but keep peeking back to check another emotion, and then we’re choking with laughter… Great site!  

Let’s see- what would the emotion of "After hours hanging out at the Agora" look like?     ;D

And Brad—what do we have under your name, in the little box of Brad Displays an Emotion?

Glad you like the site.  I think it’s a hoot.  It’s sites like this that make me love the internet.  I actually showed some of the images in class when we discussed facial expressions.

As for my pic, based on the color, "Brad realizes he has jaundice."

::)