Rictus

//ˈɹɪk.təs// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A bird’s gaping mouth.
  2. 2
    a gaping grimace wordnet
  3. 3
    The throat of a calyx.
  4. 4
    Any open-mouthed expression.

    "His face was a rictus of sheer delight."

Synonyms

All synonyms
bobbobblebouncebumpdidderdither

Example

More examples

"His face was a rictus of sheer delight."

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin rictus.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.