smile (English)

Where does "smile" come from?

The English noun smile descends from Middle English 'smilen', meaning 'to smile'[1]. This form traces through Middle Low German '*smîlen', Middle High German 'smielen', and Old High German 'smielēn', originating from Proto-West Germanic '*smīlēn' and Proto-Germanic '*smīlāną'[1]. Ultimately, these Germanic terms root back to Proto-Indo-European '*smey-', carrying the sense 'to laugh, be glad, wonder'[1][2].

Open questions

The ultimate origin traces back to the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European root '*smey-', meaning 'to laugh, be glad, wonder'. [1] [2]

Full etymology tree

smile (English), 'A facial expression comprised by flexing the muscles of both ends of one's mouth, often showing the front teeth, without vocalisation, and in humans is a common involuntary or voluntary expression of happiness, pleasure, amusement, goodwill, or anxiety.'
- inherited smilen (Middle English)
  - borrowed *smîlen (Middle Low German)
    - derived smielen (Middle High German)
      - inherited smielēn (Old High German)
        inherited *smīlēn (Proto-West Germanic)
        derived *smīlāną (Proto-Germanic)
        derived *(s)mey- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to laugh, to be glad'

Ancestors

*(s)mey- (Proto-Indo-European)
*smilāną (Proto-Germanic)

Cognates and doublets

smile (Danish)
smuilen (Dutch)
smirk (English)
smíla (Faroese)
miror (Latin)
smielen (Low German)
smercian (Old English)
smerian (Old English)
smielje (Saterland Frisian)
smila (Swedish)

Descendants and derived words

aftersmile (English)
aftersmile (English)
archaic smile (English)
besmile (English)
Botox smile (English)
Chelsea smile (English)
crack a smile (English)
Duchenne smile (English)
Glasgow smile (English)
half smile (English)
Kool-Aid smile (English)
Land of Smiles (English)

Sources

Updated October 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris