to smile in a conceited, knowing, or annoyingly complacent way
Origin of smirk
Middle English smirken from Old English smearcian, to smile a smile of this kind
Devon smirked when he made the final move to checkmate his father in the chess game.
- The definition of a smirk is a conceited or arrogant smile or facial expression.
An example of a smirk is the conceited smile you might get after you have just defeated an opponent.
- To smirk is to make a conceited and arrogant facial expression or to smile in an arrogant way.
When you give an arrogant smile after defeating your opponent, this is an example of a smirk.
YourDictionary definition and usage example. Copyright © 2018 by LoveToKnow Corp
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"smirk." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk>.
APA Style
smirk. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk
smirk
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"smirk." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk>.
APA Style
smirk. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk
smirk
intransitive verb
smirked, smirk·ing, smirksTo smile in an annoying self-satisfied manner.
noun
An annoying self-satisfied smile.
Origin of smirk
Middle English smirken from Old English smercian to smile ; see smei- in Indo-European roots.Related Forms:
- smirk′er
noun
- smirk′ing·ly smirk′i·ly
adverb
- smirk′y
adjective
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"smirk." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk>.
APA Style
smirk. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk
Noun
(plural smirks)
Verb
(third-person singular simple present smirks, present participle smirking, simple past and past participle smirked)
- To smile in a way that is affected, smug, insolent or contemptuous.
Adjective
(comparative more smirk, superlative most smirk)
Origin
Cf. Middle High German smielen/smieren (“to smile") (> obsolete, rare German schmieren).
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
Link to this page
Cite this page
MLA Style
"smirk." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 05 December 2018. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk>.
APA Style
smirk. (n.d.). Retrieved December 05th, 2018, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/smirk
Sentence Examples
- I saw my soon to be husband standing waiting for me with a smirk on his face and I took my place beside him at the alter, the world seemed a perfect place for a split second.
- The lack of background music is a little disappointing, but the "crunching" sound effect that comes out each time the worm munches on a word surely will elicit a smirk or a smile on a fairly regular basis.
- Fun and funny aren't necessarily the same costumes, but there are plenty of ideas out there to make people smirk this Halloween.
- Capture Tink's mischievous smirk or one of her engaging smiles and place the tattoo somewhere you are bound to enjoy it.
- He sauntered down Main Street, the hint of a self-satisfied smirk playing across full, pink lips.
» more...