grimace
English
Etymology
From French grimace [1], from Middle French grimace, from Old French grimace, grimuche, from grime (“mask”) (with the pejorative suffix -ace, from Latin -āceus), from Frankish *grīma, *grīmō (“mask”), from Proto-Germanic *grīmô (“mask, helmet”). Cognate with Old English grīma (“mask, visor, helmet, spectre, apparition”). More at grime.
Pronunciation
Noun
grimace (plural grimaces)
- A contorted facial expression, often expressing contempt or pain.
- 2005 March, Opera News:
- I trundle off to bed, eyes brimming, face twisted into a grateful glistening grimace, and awaken the next day wondering what all the fuss was about.
- 2005 March, Opera News:
Translations
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Verb
grimace (third-person singular simple present grimaces, present participle grimacing, simple past and past participle grimaced)
- To make grimaces; to distort one's face; to make faces.
Translations
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See also
References
- “grimace” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2019.
- “grimace” (US) / “grimace” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.
- “grimace” in Merriam–Webster Online Dictionary.
- For example, Scottish poet Robert Fergusson (1750–1774), in a poem, rhymes "na: rather gleefu' turn your face, / forsake hypocrisy, grimace". John Mitchell, in a work published in 1838, rhymes "without a hindrance or grimace, / a ready grave in every face".
- For example, The Orthoëpist: A Pronouncing Manual (1880) by Alfred Ayres.
French
Etymology
From Middle French grimace, from Old French grimace, grimuche (“a contorted or wry face, grotesque countenance”), from grime (“mask”) (with the pejorative suffix -ace, from Latin -āceus), from Old Frankish *grīma, *grīmo (“mask”), from Proto-Germanic *grīmô (“mask, helmet, cover, night”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrey- (“to strip, paint, smear”). Cognate with Middle Dutch grime (“mask”), Old Saxon grīma (“mask”), Old English grīma (“mask”), Old Norse gríma (“mask, helmet, night”). More at grime.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡʁi.mas/
Derived terms
Verb
grimace
Further reading
- “grimace” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).