smirk
verb/smɜːk/
/smɜːrk/
[intransitive]Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they smirk | /smɜːk/ /smɜːrk/ |
| he / she / it smirks | /smɜːks/ /smɜːrks/ |
| past simple smirked | /smɜːkt/ /smɜːrkt/ |
| past participle smirked | /smɜːkt/ /smɜːrkt/ |
| -ing form smirking | /ˈsmɜːkɪŋ/ /ˈsmɜːrkɪŋ/ |
- to smile in a silly or unpleasant way that shows that you are pleased with yourself, know something that other people do not know, etc.
- It was hard not to smirk.
- He smirked unpleasantly when we told him the bad news.
- She smirked to herself as she walked away.
- What are you smirking at?
Word OriginOld English sme(a)rcian, from a base shared by smile. The early sense was ‘to smile’; it later gained a notion of smugness or silliness.Want to learn more?
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