grin

GRIN/ɡɹɪn/

Pluralgrins

Verbgrins, grinning, grinned

6 meanings of grin

1
nouncountable
A wide smile that parts the lips and shows the teeth.
A huge grin spread across his face when he opened the gift.
Her grin showed two missing front teeth.
Similarsmile, beam
Oppositefrown, scowl
Note
2
verbintransitive
To smile widely so that your teeth show.
When you win, you grin without even thinking about it.
She grinned at her brother across the table.
Similarsmile, beam
Oppositefrown, scowl
3
verbtransitive
To show a feeling by smiling with your teeth showing.
She grinned her thanks at the kind stranger.
They grin their approval whenever he tells a joke.
Similarsmile, beam
Note
4
verbtransitive
To make a face like a smile or sneer by showing your teeth.
He grinned a sneer at his rival before the match.
They grin a welcome smile at every guest.
Similarflash
Note

Less common meanings

5
verbdatedintransitive
To show your teeth in an angry way, like a growling dog.
The old dog grinned and growled at strangers near the gate.
The pangs of death do make him grin.
1591, William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt,”Here, grin means to pull back the lips and show the teeth, like a snarl.
Similarsnarl
Note
6
nounobsolete
A trap used to catch birds or small animals.
The poacher set a grin among the bushes to catch rabbits.
A bird was caught fast in the grin by morning.
Note

Practice

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Origins

Meanings 1–5

From Old English grennian, which is related to the word 'groan'.

Meaning 6

From Old English grin, meaning 'snare' or 'noose'. Its origin is uncertain but probably comes from a word meaning 'intestine'.