On the connotations of smirk...

[Mal_Bey]

I was surprised by a comment from a beta reader on a story of mine. They objected to my use of 'smirked', saying that it cast my female lead in a very poor light. It surprised me some because it is a word I like, because of the friendly mischievousness I associate with the word. There is enough cultural difference between us that it isn't surprising we have some connotative differences, but it got me curious about the wider perception of the word.

“Sorry, Mia, that is one thing I have never done.” I smirked a bit. I knew most girls did shoplift at some point in their youth. “I once had a friend banished from my house for years by my Ma for just talking about shoplifting a little. Small business owners tend to take theft personally.”

So my question to the crowd is this. One a scale of 1 being fun puckishness to 5 being unsavory bitch, what is your connotation of someone smirking at you?

 

[SimonDoom]

Nobody likes to be smirked AT. I think most of us would think "bitch" if someone smirked at us. But from the standpoint of the reader, it depends on the situation. Some situations call for smirking, and I might not hold it against a character to smirk if the circumstances justified it. People are complex. They don't have to be sugary nice all the time.

 

[Mastered_again]

That's a matter of context. It could be shared humor or teasing or condescension. In any case, it would never rise to unsavory bitch. Bitchy attitude maybe.
In my book anyway.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

It depends.

"Hrmpf," the snooty bitch smirked at me when she won the spelling bee.

That's bitchy as fuck.

"You naughty little girl," her boyfriend said to her with a smirk.

That's playful, cheeky.

Personally I use smirk often.

 

[MrPixel]

Personally I use smirk often.

As do I! My polyamory characters are in fact a cheeky bunch, and a smirk is business as usual given their constant teasing and eye-rolling humor.

 

[litfan10]

I like using smirk and generally mean the playful cheeky connotation. I also had a reader who hated my use of the word and let me know it regularly.

 

[bumpercars]

It depends on the circumstances, but a smirk is pretty low-grade. It might be infuriating in other contexts, but the snippet you've quoted sounds pretty close to 1 on your scale.

I think smirking conveys a sense of superiority, even if it's momentary or joking, and some guys get butthurt when women express superiority. I won't claim that's the only reason readers would dislike a female character's smirk, but it's probably on the list.

 

[mildlyaroused]

I lean towards the playful interpretation most of the time too. Even if someone is smirking "at me", I take it to mean we are sharing in non-verbal mischief. I don't know why people hold such negative connotations with the word. Even if they are making fun of me, it's probably one of my friends. That's just banter.

Like with all words, context is everything. A "shout" can be just as ambiguous as a smirk, if it's on its own: is it a mean shout? A panicked shout? Something else? If your dialogue, characters and narrative provide sufficient context and subtext, most readers will interpret "smirk" correctly. Those who don't are not your problem.

 

[Bamagan]

I was surprised by a comment from a beta reader on a story of mine. They objected to my use of 'smirked', saying that it cast my female lead in a very poor light. It surprised me some because it is a word I like, because of the friendly mischievousness I associate with the word. There is enough cultural difference between us that it isn't surprising we have some connotative differences, but it got me curious about the wider perception of the word.

“Sorry, Mia, that is one thing I have never done.” I smirked a bit. I knew most girls did shoplift at some point in their youth. “I once had a friend banished from my house for years by my Ma for just talking about shoplifting a little. Small business owners tend to take theft personally.”

So my question to the crowd is this. One a scale of 1 being fun puckishness to 5 being unsavory bitch, what is your connotation of someone smirking at you?

I use the word often, and generally for things that would probably rate around a one or a two on your scale. Gentle teasing, used when someone does something mildly embarrassing, when one is trying to acknowledge life's absurdity without being too harsh, and so forth. I'd probably transition to something like sneer or leer for the higher end of the scale, since they tend to convey a greater degree of scorn or distortion of a normal smile. But coming from certain characters, pretty much any kind of a smile tends to convey contempt or their perceived superiority.

 

[Bramblethorn]

“Sorry, Mia, that is one thing I have never done.” I smirked a bit. I knew most girls did shoplift at some point in their youth. “I once had a friend banished from my house for years by my Ma for just talking about shoplifting a little. Small business owners tend to take theft personally.”

So my question to the crowd is this. One a scale of 1 being fun puckishness to 5 being unsavory bitch, what is your connotation of someone smirking at you?

Depends on context. If somebody was introduced as "wearing a perpetual smirk" I'd rate that as a 4 or so, but a brief smirk in a playful conversation would be a 1.

I'm not certain whether it fits this scene though. A smirk usually suggests somebody who's pleased with themself. Without the previous lines it's hard to know, but it's not clear why the speaker would be especially pleased with themself here. Unless they're somebody who takes a lot of pride in "never shoplifted", which could come across as sanctimonious - again, depending on broader context.

(I've never shoplifted either, but it's not something that feels particularly brag-worthy.)

 

[Smuttyandfun]

I use it as well. I always use it in a playful way, and no one has ever complained or thought it made a character seem bitchy.

 

[Cagivagurl]

I was surprised by a comment from a beta reader on a story of mine. They objected to my use of 'smirked', saying that it cast my female lead in a very poor light. It surprised me some because it is a word I like, because of the friendly mischievousness I associate with the word. There is enough cultural difference between us that it isn't surprising we have some connotative differences, but it got me curious about the wider perception of the word.

“Sorry, Mia, that is one thing I have never done.” I smirked a bit. I knew most girls did shoplift at some point in their youth. “I once had a friend banished from my house for years by my Ma for just talking about shoplifting a little. Small business owners tend to take theft personally.”

So my question to the crowd is this. One a scale of 1 being fun puckishness to 5 being unsavory bitch, what is your connotation of someone smirking at you?

I like the word smirk. I consider it playful and full of fun. It is however a word that has more than one meaning. Most adults can figure out your intent by where you use it.
She gave me that sexy teasing smirk.
Seeing the smirk, I realised she was in a playful mood.
I use it a lot when writing. A fun work that can add texture and a sense of fun.

Cagivagurl

 

[HeyAll]

I remember getting a comment like that, maybe 5-8 years ago, then I thought about it and realized the criticism was correct. So I stopped using it.

 

[TheArsonist]

To me, a smirk is close to a sneer in connotation, and typically signals condescension. Collins defines it as "a smile expressing scorn, smugness, etc, rather than pleasure."

Unless the context very clearly establishes that it's friendly, I would probably rank it 3-4.

 

[TheLobster]

I don’t think I’ve ever used “smirk” in a context that wasn’t cheeky and playful.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

I'll use it all the way from 1 to 5. It just depends on the character and the scene.

 

[StillStunned]

I might be overthinking this, but to me smirk as a verb carries more negative connotations than it does as a noun. "Smirking" sounds worse than "saying with a smirk", particularly if you modify that to "with a slight smirk" or "with his eyes betraying a slight smirk" or something.

 

[Plathfan]

According to Merriam-Webster, a "smirk" is "a smile that shows a smug, condescending, or self-satisfied attitude."

Therefore, it's difficult to find any playful or positive connotation here. Your beta reader was right.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

According to Merriam-Webster, a "smirk" is "a smile that shows a smug, condescending, or self-satisfied attitude."

Therefore, it's difficult to find any playful or positive connotation here. Your beta reader was right.

I still think it depends on how you write it. If it's meant to be playful, or flirty, I can't see a cute little smirk, being construed as condescending or spiteful.

 

[mildlyaroused]

According to Merriam-Webster, a "smirk" is "a smile that shows a smug, condescending, or self-satisfied attitude."

Therefore, it's difficult to find any playful or positive connotation here. Your beta reader was right.

Cambridge: "To smile in a way that expresses satisfaction or pleasure about having done something, or knowing something that is not known by someone else."

Oxford: "To smile; in later use, to smile in an affected, self-satisfied, or silly manner; to simper."

It can be negative. It can also be playful and positive.

It can be used on any scale from 1 - 5, and done so correctly. When an audience reads a piece of fiction, they give themselves the task of interpreting the author's words. If they stick to their own internal definitions rather than accounting for context or nuance in language, that's their fault.

I don’t think I’ve ever used “smirk” in a context that wasn’t cheeky and playful.

I sort of feel that, when used in a negative way, it can come across as too on-the-nose. Your villain is "smirking"? Really? Are they also twirling their moustache?

 

[Plathfan]

I can't see a cute little smirk, being construed as condescending or spiteful.

By this logic, I can't see a cute little roach being construed as ugly or a disease-carrier, but that's just me.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

By this logic, I can't see a cute little roach being construed as ugly or a disease-carrier, but that's just me.

I think a teasing little smirk and a disease-ridden roach are miles apart. But maybe that's just me.

 

[StillStunned]

I sort of feel that, when used in a negative way, it can come across as too on-the-nose. Your villain is "smirking"? Really? Are they also twirling their moustache?

It depends how blatant it is. A simple bully will smirk when they've cornered their victim. But an evil mastermind who's trapped the hero and wants to gloat might have "a trace of a smirk hidden beneath their façade of politeness".

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Big transatlantic difference. American writers seem to use it as a synonym for 'grin', a word they rarely use. Possibly 'pleased grin'.

In the UK, it's only used to mean a smug grin, almost invariably by a bad guy. A villain going "Before I kill you, Mr Bond, I will tell you my cunning plan" will smirk. Your partner may smirk in a few particular circumstances, especially if I to BDSM, but otherwise, no.

 

[Plathfan]

I think a teasing little smirk

By adding adjectives like "little" and "teasing," you're trying to shift the original negative meaning of the word. While you have the right to do so, it remains semantically incorrect.