Link Centre Dictionary

countenance

coun·te·nance

UK/ˈkaʊn.tə.nəns/ US/ˈkaʊnt.nəns/ uncommon obsolete
noun (3) verb (1)

noun

1.

the appearance conveyed by a person''s face

  • “a pleasant countenance”
  • “a stern visage”
Synonyms
2.

formal and explicit approval

  • “a Democrat usually gets the union”
Synonyms
3.

verb

1.

consent to, give permission

  • “She permitted her son to visit her estranged husband”
  • “I won”
  • “;”
Synonyms
Antonyms

Origin

From Middle English contenaunce, countenaunce, from Anglo-Norman countenance and Old French contenance, from the present participle of contenir, or from Late Latin continentia, and therefore a doublet of continence.

Phrases

  • body language
  • divine countenance
  • in countenance
  • keep one's countenance
  • out of countenance

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Parts

Related verbs

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.