straight face

noun

1. a serious or impassive facial expression that conceals one's true feelings about something, especially a desire to laugh.

straight face

noun

1. a serious facial expression, esp one that conceals the impulse to laugh

Derived Forms

• ˈstraight-ˈfaced, adjective

Other Words From

• straight-faced adjective
• straight-fac·ed·ly [streyt, -, fey, -sid-lee, -, feyst, -lee], adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of straight face¹

First recorded in 1890–95

Idioms and Phrases

see keep a straight face .

Example Sentences

“With a straight face, the ‘believe the science’ guys will say ‘actually, we don’t yet have enough data to say whether men and boys are stronger and faster than women and girls’.

From Salon

He kept a straight face, tormenting the cast who couldn’t stay in character.

From Los Angeles Times

The man can utter a line like “Alex Levy is Lazarus… which I guess makes me Jesus” and somehow keep a straight face.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s wrong that I struggle to keep a straight face.

From Los Angeles Times

“It tastes like basic fruit juice. I can hardly taste the vodka. I think it’s mid,” she said with a straight face.

From Salon