(Discover even more words in The Writer’s Body Lexicon.)

The “Eye”brows Have It

Eyebrows, forehead fuzz, eye coifs … No matter what writers call them, eyebrows can enhance descriptions, reveal emotion, or add humor.

Kevyn Aucoin said, “Life is too short to spend hoping that the perfectly arched eyebrow or hottest new lip shade will mask an ugly heart.”

However, perfectly arched eyebrows reveal motivation, as do artificial, unkempt, or tangled brows.

Emotion Beats and Physical Manifestations

Jack Black once said, “You must never underestimate the power of the eyebrow.” Although a YouTube search for Jack Black eyebrows locates several humorous videos, eyebrows are serious business and can signal many emotions.

Alarm
quick elevation of eyebrows

Amazement, surprise
quick elevation of eyebrows, often accompanied by bulging “flashbulb” eyes

Amusement
raised eyebrows
wiggling eyebrows

Anger, fury
eyebrows forced together into a pronounced frown

Annoyance, impatience
raised eyebrows

Anxiety, grief
knitted eyebrows

Attraction
raised eyebrows, direct eye contact

Confidence, smugness
arched eyebrows

Confusion
massaging one’s eyebrows or forehead
eyebrows forced together into a pronounced frown
raising and holding one’s eyebrows for a moment while waiting for clarification or agreement

Curiosity
raised eyebrows
forcing eyebrows into a frown and then releasing into a wide-eyed, raised-eyebrow expression

Denial, disbelief, doubt, skepticism
raised eyebrows
cocking one eyebrow
lowering one’s eyebrows into a quizzical frown
quick raising and lowering of one’s eyebrows (eyebrow “shrug”)

Disagreement
raised eyebrows

Discomfort, pain
lowered eyebrows, perhaps accompanied by a wince

Disgust
forcing one’s eyebrows together into a pronounced frown

Eagerness
cocking an eyebrow

Fastidiousness
meticulously plucking and/or waxing one’s eyebrows

Fear
furrowed brow
raised eyebrows, wide eyes, open mouth

Hopefulness
raised eyebrows

Insecurity, uncertainty, worry
lowered eyebrows
eyebrows pressed together into a frown
massaging one’s eyebrows or forehead

Irritation
scratching one’s eyebrow(s)
eyebrows squeezed together into a frown

Misery, sadness, suffering
inner corners of eyebrows angled upward
u-shaped furrow between eyebrows

Oppression
eyebrows forced together into a pronounced frown

Politeness when acknowledging an acquaintance or friend
eyebrows rise quickly in greeting and then drop again (eyebrow “flash”)

Regret, remorse
forcing one’s eyebrows together into a pronounced frown

Reluctance
lowering one’s eyebrows into a frown

Satisfaction
raising one eyebrow

Scorn
cocking one eyebrow, and accompanying it with a smirk or sneer

Submission, courtship
lowering head and peering up from under eyebrows

Sympathy
nodding, with eyebrows pulled down into a slight frown

If you need additional beats, consult a body language dictionary. (As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

Adjectives

Pay special attention to opinion adjectives such as innocent. Innocent eyebrows hint that a character might be guilty.

A and B
absurd, abundant, accusatory, active, adhesive, aggressive, ample, amused, ancient, angry, anxious, appreciative, aristocratic, arrogant, artificial, astonished, asymmetrical, attentive, attractive, baffled, bald, beastly, beautiful, belligerent, bemused, bold, boyish, bristly, broad, bushy

C
calm, cartoonish, cautioning, censuring, challenging, close, close-knit, coarse, cold, comical, compelling, concerned, condescending, confused, conspicuous, contemptuous, continuous, cool, craggy, crazy, creased, crinkled, crisp, critical, crooked, curious, cynical

D
dainty, debonair, deep-set, defiant, delicate, dense, derisive, determined, devilish, disapproving, disbelieving, disdainful, disinterested, dismissive, dispassionate, distinct, distinguished, doubtful, downcast, dramatic, dubious, dusty, dyed

E and F
earnest, eccentric, eerie, elderly, elegant, eloquent, enormous, even, expectant, expressive, exquisite, faint, fake, false, faultless, faux, feathered, feathery, feminine, feral, ferocious, fervent, fierce, fine, flexible, fluffy, formidable, foxy, frantic, frazzled, full, funny, furious, furrowed, furry, fuzzy

G and H
generous, gigantic, girlie-girl, glamorous, gloomy, glossy, gothic, graceful, gracious, grave, grim, hairless, hairy, half-raised, handsome, happy, haughty, heavy, high, honest, hopeful, horizontal, humongous, humorous

I
icy, immaculate, immense, immobile, impatient, impeccable, imperious, impressive, inadequate, incredulous, indeterminate, indifferent, indignant, indulgent, innocent, inquiring, inquisitive, insolent, intense, interested, interesting, interrogatory, invisible, inviting, iridescent, irregular, irritated, itchy

J to M
judgmental, knowing, languid, large, lazy, level, little, lofty, long, loose, lovely, low, lush, luxuriant, magnificent, majestic, manly, masculine, massive, meager, menacing, merciless, merry, meticulous, mighty, minute, mischievous, misshapen, missing, mobile, modest, moist, motionless

N and O
narrow, neat, nice, noble, noncommittal, nonexistent, oblique, odd, officious, old-man, old-woman, open, outlandish, overbearing, overgrown, overhanging, overplucked, overpowering, oversized, overwhelming

P to R
painted, patchy, patrician, peculiar, penciled, pencil-thin, pensive, perfect, perplexed, pierced, placid, playful, plumed, polite, ponderous, portentous, powerful, precise, prim, prominent, proud, puny, questioning, quirky, quizzical, ragged, rebellious, refined, regal, respectful, roguish, rough, rueful, ruffled, rugged, rumpled

Sa to Sm
sad, sarcastic, sardonic, satirical, scant, scanty, scornful, scraggly, scratchy, scruffy, sculpted, seductive, sensible, serious, serpentine, severe, shadowy, shaggy, shaped, shapeless, shapely, sharp, shaven, shiny, short, silken, silky, single, sinuous, sizable, skeptical, skimpy, sleek, slender, slim, smooth, smug

Sn to Sy
snowy, soft, solemn, solid, somber, sparse, speculative, splendid, squiggly, steady, steep, stern, stiff, stormy, straggly, strange, stray, striking, strong, stubborn, stubby, stylish, suave, substantial, suggestive, sullen, supercilious, surprised, suspicious, sweaty, symmetrical, sympathetic

T
tangled, tender, terrified, terrifying, thick, thin, thoughtful, threadlike, thready, thunderous, tidy, tiny, tolerant, translucent, triumphant, troubled, tufted, tweezed, twisted

U and V
unattractive, unbecoming, unconcerned, unequivocal, uneven, ungroomed, unhappy, unimpressed, unkempt, unplucked, unruly, untamed, untidy, untrimmed, upraised, urbane, velvety, venerable, victorious, virtuous

W to Z
warm, warning, wary, waxed, weary, well-defined, whimsical, wicked, wide, wild, wiry, wise, wispy, wistful, wolfish, wooly, wrathful, wry, youthful, zany

Similes and Metaphors

Readers will remember unique figures of speech, sometimes for centuries. However, if you introduce a character with Groucho Marx eyebrows, your audience should know who Groucho is. YA readers won’t understand. Seniors might, but what happens in a few years?

Takeaway: avoid dated references.

Think of the following as seedlings from which to grow your own phrasing:

black and arched like the wings of a soaring raven

blond/blonde halos floating over angelic eyes

delicate as the fine strokes of a pastel portrait

drooping like giant mustaches above bloodshot eyes

knitted tighter than someone’s grip on the steering wheel

like a hair explosion in the barber shop

like mold on an ancient pork chop in the back of the refrigerator

like strips of overcooked bacon

like they were drawn on during a tornado

like they were finger-painted by a toddler

like twin fur muffs protecting the eyes peeking out of someone’s ski mask

protruding, and straight as pencils

quirked like the wrinkles above a sad puppy’s eyes

squirming like two inchworms on someone’s forehead

tinted and arched like rainbows shimmering above someone’s tears

twin acid etchings, sharp and cruel

twin pointed alps, as frosty as someone’s attitude

two peaks of hoar frost above someone’s icy eyes

wiry as barbeque brushes

Colors

The following list provides a few colors suitable for eyebrow descriptions. See also 1000+ Ways to Describe Colors and the Color section of 400+ Words to Describe Hair

A to G
ashen, auburn, black, blond/blonde, blue-black, brown, calico, charcoal, chocolate, cinnamon, coal-black, colorless, coppery, crimson, dark, ebony, fair, flaxen, fox-red, frosty, ginger, golden, golden-brown, grey, grizzled

H to Y
hazel, honey-colored, inky, orange, pale, raven, red, ruddy, rusty, sable, salt-and-pepper, sandy, silvery, slate-grey, smoky, snowy, sorrel, straw-colored, streaked, sun-bleached, tan, taupe, tawny, white, yellow

Scents

A character’s nose would have to be almost touching someone’s eyebrows before noticing a scent. That provides a clue about the characters’ relationship and/or proximity.

Eyebrows might smell like:

A to H
an ashtray, axle grease, baby diapers, barbecue smoke, a barn, a brewery, burnt rubber, candle wax, car exhaust, chicken manure, chocolate, a Christmas tree, cologne, curry, dirt, freshly baked bread, hair dye, hair pomade, hairspray, hay, horse sweat

I to W
an ICU (intensive care unit), maple syrup, a moldy basement, morning breath, mustache wax, peach fuzz, peroxide, popcorn, salsa, singed hair, a skunk, sweat, tobacco, vinegar, weed, wet dog, wet feathers

See also 200+ Ways to Incorporate Scent

and the Scent sections of:

400+ Words to Describe Hair

600+ Ways to Describe Beards

500+ Ways to Describe Mustaches

Shapes

Unless a character’s eyebrows are an unusual shape, you might want to ignore this section.

A to Z
angular, arched, arrow-straight, batwing, bridge-shaped, caret-shaped, circular, circumflexed, Cleopatra-browed, corrugated, curved, cycloidal, high-arched, inverted, lightning-bolt shaped, peaked, pointed, quadrilateral, rectangular, Spock-browed, squared, S-shaped, straight, tapered, V-shaped, wavy, zigzag, zipper-shaped

Verbs and Phrasal Verbs (1): Transitive

A character’s eyebrows might accentuate seductive eyes, protrude from a receding forehead, or stretch across a taut face. In every case, the verb takes an object.

A to S
accentuate, adorn, arch (across, over), betray, cause furrows (above, between, in), dangle over, float (above, over), frame, hang over, lie (above, beneath), overgrow, overhang, protrude (above, from, over, under), shade, shadow, stretch (across, over)

Verbs and Phrasal Verbs (2): Intransitive

Eyebrows might buckle together, entwine, or twitch. Period. These verbs don’t require an object.

A to I
appear, arch (up, down), beetle (down, together), bend, bob, bow, bristle, buckle (together), bunch (together, up), curl, dip, disappear, draw together, droop, drop, elevate, entwine, flatten, grow together, inch (down, together, up, upward), itch

J to R
jerk, jut, knit (together), knot (together), lift, lower, meet, merge, move, narrow, pinch (together), plow (downward, together), plunge (together), pop (apart, up), prickle, project, protrude, quiver, relax, remain motionless, rise

S to T
sag, scrunch (together), shift (down, up), shoot (up, upward), slant, slope, snap (together, up, upward), spasm, squeeze (together), stick out, tangle together, thicken, thin, tighten, tremble, twitch (together, up, upward)

Verbs and Phrasal Verbs (3): Verbs that Take Eyebrow or Eyebrows as an Object

Usage examples:

She cocked one eyebrow and stared at him until he blushed.

He massaged his eyebrows, trying to alleviate his headache.

He wiggled his eyebrows and cocked his head.

In each of the previous sentences, the character performs a deliberate action, requiring the verb to take an object. Many of the verbs in this list could also behave as intransitive verbs:

Her eyebrows cinched together.

Her eyebrows singed when she stood too close to the fire.

His eyebrows wiggled when he made faces at the kids.

B to P
braid, brush, cinch (together), cock, crinkle, crook, gather (together), glue (together), groom, hike (up), jerk (together, up), lift, line, massage, microblade, moisten, paint (over, with), paste onto, pierce, pluck, press (together, with), pull (together, with), push (together)

Q to W
quirk, raise, rub, scratch, screw (together, up), shade, shape, shave, singe, sketch (in), slam together, slant (down, up), slash, slide (down up), smooth, squinch (together), stroke, tame, tilt, trim, tweeze, twist, wax, wiggle

Nouns

Review these replacements for eyebrow — I invented a few — and experiment with your own alternatives.

B to F
brow bristles, brow carpet, brow fuzz, brow grass, brow mane, brow-beard, brow-stache, dandruff catcher, eye coif, eye coiffure, eye ruff, forehead caterpillar, forehead fur, forehead fuzz, forehead thatch, forehead toupee, frons (used for animals, especially insects; humor?)

L to U
lice lair, monobrow (eyebrows that merge and look like a single brow), nit nest, supraorbital arch, supraorbital ridge, supraorbital torus, twin mountain peaks, unibrow (monobrow)

Props

A simple prop can reveal clues about a character’s age, phobias, or leisure activities.

His acne extended into his eyebrows.

A spider crawled across her eyebrows. She screamed.

His bushy eyebrows prevented his swimming goggles from sealing.

A to P
acne, brow stamp, castor oil, comb, dandruff, dye, eyebrow embroidery, eyebrow gel, eyebrow pen, eyebrow pencil, flaky skin, frostbite, henna, lice, mascara, petroleum jelly (Vaseline), piercing

Q to W
Q-Tips, rash, razor, sand, scar, slash in one or both brows, snowflakes, spider, sunburn, sunglasses, swimming goggles, tattoo removal, tattooed eyebrows, threading, tint, transplants, tweezers, vitamin E, waterproof eyebrow sealer

Clichés and Idioms

For such an expressive area of the face, I found a dearth of clichés and idioms. Here are a couple.

down to a gnat’s eyebrow: meticulously, painstakingly, thoroughly

to cause raised eyebrows: astonish, flabbergast, offend, shock

If you’re desperate to find idioms for dialogue, repurpose eye clichés:

Shot him right between the eyebrows.

Stare eyebrow-to-eyebrow.

Up to his eyebrows in alligators.

Note: A couple of occurrences of cocked or raised eyebrows in a novel won’t bother readers. More, however, will brand your writing as cliché.