Link Centre Dictionary

sneer

UK/snɪə̯/ US/snɪɚ̯/ uncommon
verb (2) noun (2)

verb

1.

express through a scornful smile

  • “she sneered her contempt”
2.

smile contemptuously

  • “she sneered at her little sister”

noun

1.

a facial expression of contempt or scorn; the upper lip curls

Synonyms
2.

Origin

From Middle English sneren (“to mock, scoff at”), from Old English fnǣran (“to snort”), from Proto-West Germanic *fnāʀijan, from Proto-Germanic *fnesaną (“to pant, gasp”). Akin to North Frisian sneere (“to scorn”), Middle High German snerren (“to chatter; gossip”), Danish snerre (“to growl, snarl”).

Phrases

  • sneer quote

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

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.