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

An unknown author once said that everyone smiles in the same language.

An encouraging smile might comfort a mourner or urge a child to take a first step. A scornful smile might raise the dander of a political opponent or irritate a romantic rival. A lecherous smile could alienate a prospective love interest.

This post presents ways to include meaningful smiles in prose and poetry.

Emotion Beats and Physical Manifestations

Smiles don’t always indicate joy, so there’s nothing wrong with describing a smile as joyous or happy. People sometimes shed tears when they’re happy and smile when they’re not. Many emotions can cause a smile, including the following:

approval, arrogance, attentiveness, cheerfulness, contempt, contentment, derision, enthusiasm, euphoria, flirtatiousness, happiness, hostility, joy, optimism, playfulness, pride, scorn, shyness, sincerity, smugness, timidity, worry

The quickest and laziest way to tell readers about a character’s state of mind is to include a phrase such as derisive smile. However, you can just as quickly create point-of-view problems by doing so:

Alicia’s derisive smile filled me with anger.

How does the POV character know that Alicia is expressing derision? Maybe she’s trying to be nice, but her stiletto heels are blistering her feet. Context, including appropriate body language, should provide details that support the narrator’s interpretation of Alicia’s mental state.

The previously mentioned emotions could be expressed in many ways. Here are a few.

Approval

high-five

tilting one’s head to bare the neck

mirroring another person’s body language

Arrogance

assertive voice

upturned nose

puffed-out chest

Attentiveness

maintaining eye contact

placing a finger on one’s temple

angling entire body, including toes, toward the object of attention

Cheerfulness

head held high

bouncy step

whistling

Contempt

pinched mouth

wrinkled nose

curled upper lip

Contentment

shoulders held back

head held high

clapping another character on the back

Derision

bullying

flared nostrils

sarcastic remarks

Enthusiasm

boisterous voice

pumping arms

sparkling eyes

Euphoria

glowing face

puffed-out chest

face turned toward sky, perhaps while standing with outstretched arms

Flirtatiousness

fluttering eyelashes

open mouth with tip of tongue showing

head turned away or slightly downturned while character maintains eye contact

Happiness

humming or singing

both hands placed over chest

arms swinging while walking

Hostility

bulging eyes

clenched jaw

rigid cords in neck

Joy

wide eyes

happy tears

pronounced dimples in cheeks

Optimism

crossing one’s fingers

enthusiastic chitchat

standing akimbo, head held high

Playfulness

gentle teasing

making funny faces

good-natured nudging with an elbow or shoulder

Pride in oneself

elevating chin

maintaining eye contact

holding one’s head high or tilting it back

Pride in someone else

moist eyes

adoring gaze

tears trickling down one’s face

Scorn

exhaling with a pfft sound

rigid face, orange-peel texture of chin

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

Shyness

biting nails

minimal eye contact

playing with one’s hair or mustache

Sincerity

open gaze

palms up or open

placing one’s hand on one’s heart (sometimes done on purpose to fake sincerity)

Smugness

arched eyebrows

lifting the chin and exposing one’s neck

sitting with one’s legs spread wide (usually male)

Timidity

bowing one’s head

biting one’s lip

fidgeting with one’s clothing, jewelry, etc.

Worry

pale face

dark circles under the eyes

massaging one’s eyebrows or forehead

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

Adjectives

As explained in the previous section, some adjectives express opinions that muddle POV. Approach with caution.

A

abrupt, acidulous, affected, affectionate, agreeable, airy, all-knowing, alluring, aloof, amazing, ambiguous, ambrosial, amiable, amused, angelic, angry, answering, antiseptic, anxious, apologetic, appreciative, approving, ardent, arrogant, artificial, attentive, awkward

B

backward, baleful, bashful, beaming, beatific, beautiful, beguiling, bemused, benevolent, benign, benignant, best, big, bitter, bittersweet, bland, blank, bleak, blissful, blithe, bombastic, bone-chilling, boundless, boyish, brave, breezy, brief, bright, brilliant, brittle, broad, brutal, buoyant, businesslike

C

calm, carefree, casual, cautious, cheerful, cheesy, cherubic, childlike, clear, clenched, cockeyed, cocky, cold, comfortable, complacent, conceited, conciliatory, condescending, confident, congenial, congratulatory, conscious, conspiratorial, contagious, contemptuous, contented, convenient, coquettish, cordial, corrugated, counterfeit, courageous, courteous, covert, coy, crafty, crazed, crooked, cryptic, cunning, curdled, curious, cynical

D and E

daffy, dangerous, dark, deadly, debonair, deep, deferential, defiant, delightful, deprecating, derisive, devilish, diabolical, dim, disdainful, distant, distorted, doubtful, drowsy, drunken, dubious, eager, easy, ecstatic, egotistical, electric, elusive, empathetic, empty, encouraging, endless, enigmatic, enormous, enthusiastic, envious, euphoric, evil, excited, expectant, exultant

F

facile, faded, faint, fake, false, faraway, fascinating, fat, fatherly, fatuous, fawning, feeble, feral, fierce, fitful, flashy, flattering, fleeting, flippant, flirtatious, fond, foolish, forced, formal, frank, frigid, furtive

G

gargantuan, garish, gentle, genuine, ghastly, giddy, gigantic, girlish, glacial, glib, glowing, good-natured, goofy, gracious, grateful, gratuitous, grave, greasy, grim, grotesque, groveling, grudging, guilty, gummy

H

habitual, half-hearted, handsome, happy, hasty, haughty, hearty, heavenly, hesitant, hideous, high-voltage, hollow, honest, hopeful, hospitable, hostile, huge, humorless, hungry, hypocritical

I

icy, idiotic, immutable, impersonal, impish, imploring, impudent, inane, incandescent, incisive, incorrigible, incredulous, indifferent, indolent, indomitable, indulgent, infantile, infectious, inflexible, ingratiating, innocent, inscrutable, insincere, insipid, insolent, intolerable, inviting, involuntary, ironic, ironical, irrepressible, irresistible, irreverent

J to L

jaunty, jeering, jejune, jovial, joyless, joyous, jubilant, kind, knowing, languid, languorous, lazy, lecherous, lethargic, lewd, lifeless, listless, little, little-boy, little-girl, lofty, long-suffering, loose, lopsided, loutish, lovely, loving, luminous, lurid

M

magical, magnetic, majestic, malevolent, malicious, malignant, maternal, meaning, mechanical, meek, melancholy, mellow, meretricious, merry, metallic, mirthless, mischievous, mocking, modest, Mona Lisa, morose, motherly, mournful, murderous, mysterious

N and O

naked, narrow, nasty, natural, naughty, nauseating, nervous, nonchalant, noncommittal, obligatory, oblivious, obnoxious, obsequious, ominous, open, optimistic

P

pained, parting, passing, paternal, pathetic, patient, patronizing, peaceful, peculiar, peerless, pensive, perennial, perfunctory, permanent, pert, phony, pitiful, pitying, placid, plastic, playful, polished, polite, pompous, portentous, posed, practiced, predatory, preoccupied, prim, primal, professional, proper, proud, provocative

Q and R

quaint, quick, quiet, quirky, quizzical, radiant, rapacious, rapid, rare, rascally, ravishing, ready, reassuring, refined, regal, regretful, religious, reluctant, resolute, respectful, responding, restless, restrained, rictus, ridiculous, rigid, roguish, rueful, rustic, ruthless

S

sad, sadistic, sagacious, saintly, sarcastic, sardonic, satirical, saturnine, saucy, scornful, secretive, seductive, self-absorbed, self-righteous, sensuous, serene, severe, sexy, shadowy, shaky, shamefaced, sheepish, shifty, shy, sickly, sidelong, silly, simulated, sincere, sinister, skeptical, sleepy, slight, slimy, sloppy, slow, sly, small, smarmy, smug, soft, solicitous, somber, sour, sparkling, speculative, spicy, steady, sticky, stiff, stilted, suave, sublime, submissive, sudden, suggestive, sunny, supercilious, superficial, superior, surprised, sustained, sweet, sympathetic

T and U

tentative, thankful, thin, tight, tight-lipped, timid, timorous, tired, tolerant, toothless, toothy, torpid, tortured, transcendent, tremulous, triumphant, truculent, trusting, twisted, unassuming, uncontrolled, unconvincing, unctuous, uneasy, uneven, unpleasant, unreadable, unsettling

V and W

vacant, vague, valiant, vapid, varnished, vicious, victorious, vindictive, visible, vivacious, wan, wanton, warm, watery, weak, weary, welcoming, whimsical, wholesome, wicked, wide, wide-eyed, wild, winning, winsome, wintry, wise, wistful, wondering, wooden, worried, wrinkled, wry

Similes and Metaphors

Words from the animal kingdom often function well as adjectives or as seeds for similes and metaphors. The animals, which are familiar to most readers, evoke memorable images.

A to T

apish, camel at a watering hole, cat who smells a mouse, Cheshire Cat [cliché], crocodile (false, phony), cud-chewing cow, dog licking its butt, froggy, hawkish, horsey, iguana, mulish, ostrich, reptilian, toady

More creativity starters:

as bright as dawn on a dazzling summer’s day

as sparkling as sunrays on powdered snow

as wrinkled as a slept-in shirt

cherubic — but deadly as a poisoned dart

like a groom’s grin on his wedding night

like a vampire who smells fresh blood

Colors

A villain might have a dark smile, whereas a cancer patient’s might be wan. The rictus grin of a person in death throes might look grey or blue. A tennis player might sport a sunburnt smile.

However, colors most often appear in descriptions of lips and mouths.

Verbs and Phrasal Verbs

While reviewing this list, remember that some verbs describe how smiles affect others:

Molly’s smile alarmed me.

Molly’s smile offended the mail carrier.

Some verbs serve double duty:

Alexander’s smile hardened on his face.

Alexander’s nonchalant smile hardened my heart.

A

adorn, affect, aggravate, agitate, alarm, alleviate [anxiety, dark mood, worry], anger, annoy, appall, appear, assuage [concern, fear, unease], astonish, astound, attract

B and C

bedazzle, befuddle, beguile, bewilder, bloom, blossom, bother, broaden, bug, burgeon, calm, captivate, charm, cheer, coax, coerce, comfort, confound, confuse, convince, cover [one’s face], crack [one’s face], creep onto [one’s face]

D

daze, dazzle, defeat, delight, demoralize, develop, die, disappear, disappoint, disarm, discomfit, discompose, disconcert, disintegrate, displease, disquiet, dissipate, dissolve, distend, distort, distress, disturb, droop, dry up, dumbfound, dwindle

E and F

electrify, emerge, enamor, enchant, encourage, endear, engage, engross, engulf [one’s face], enlarge, enrage, enrapture, enslave, ensnare, enthrall, entice, evaporate, exasperate, exhilarate, expand, explode, fade, falter, fascinate, fill [one’s face], flabbergast, flicker, flower, fluster, form, freeze, frighten

G and H

germinate, gnaw at, goad, greet, grieve, grow, harden, haunt, hearten, horrify, hurt, hypnotize

I to M

impress, imprison, incense, infect, inflame, infuriate, inspire, intimidate, intrigue, invite, irk, irritate, jolt, lure, madden, materialize, menace, mesmerize, mock, mollify, move [as in affect], mushroom

N to R

nonplus, offend, outrage, panic, paralyze, peeve, perplex, perturb, petrify, placate, plague, pop up, provoke, puzzle, rankle, reach the eyes [cliché], reappear, reassure, restore confidence, rile, rivet

S

sadden, scare, settle on, shock, shrink, shrivel, soften, soothe, split [one’s face], spread (out), spring up, sprout, startle, stiffen, stretch, stun, stupefy, surface, surprise

T

take root, take shape, take someone aback, tantalize, taunt, tease, tempt, terrify, terrorize, thrill, torment, torture, touch [as in affect], transfix, trap, trouble, twist

U to W

unfold, unfurl, unnerve, unsettle, uplift, upset, vanish, vex, wane, waste away, waver, welcome, widen, wilt, wither, worry, wound

Nouns

Is smile the word you want? Consider the following. In each case, a single noun can replace the adjective + smile combo:

beam: a good-natured or radiant smile

fleer: an impudent or jeering smile

grin: a broad smile

simper: a coquettish, coy, or ingratiating smile

smirk: a smug, conceited, or silly smile

sneer: a contemptuous, mocking, or unpleasant smile

More nouns that could replace smile include:

A to S

amused expression, amused look, arched lips, curl of the lip, dimpling of the face, leer, snigger

Props

See 600+ Ways to Describe Lips and Mouths for dozens of props that would be suitable for smiles.

Clichés and Idioms

It’s unlikely that smile idioms and clichés will cause undue repetition in your WIP, because English doesn’t contain that many. However, check for the following and replace them if they don’t suit your narrator’s voice or characters’ dialogue.

all smiles: delighted, ecstatic, euphoric, thrilled

wearing nothing but a smile: naked, nude, undressed