grin like a Cheshire cat
Smile without explanation
To grin like a Cheshire cat is to smile broadly and mysteriously, often with an air of self-satisfaction or knowing amusement.
The phrase comes from Lewis Carroll's *Alice's Adventures in Wonderland*, where the Cheshire Cat famously disappears leaving only its grin behind.
He just sat there grinning like a Cheshire cat, refusing to explain the joke.
- laughExpress amusement vocally
- grinBroad, toothy smile
- smilePleased facial expression
- chuckleLow, suppressed laugh
- catSmall furry housepet
wide grin · giggle · enigmatic · expression · beam · knowing smile · iconic imagery · disappearing · surreal · cryptic · whimsical · inscrutable · Lewis Carroll · elusive · mischievous · Alice · Alice in Wonderland · feline
grin like a Cheshire catpoker face
Intentionally expressionless look
deadpan · blank expression · expressionless · stone-faced · frown
grin like a Cheshire catlong face
Visibly sad expression
hang one's head · weep · cry · sob · burst into tears