mien
noun
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Like its synonyms bearing and demeanor, mien means the outward manifestation of personality or attitude. Bearing is the most general, but it often implies characteristic posture, as in "a woman of regal bearing." Demeanor suggests attitude expressed through outward behavior in the presence of others—for example, "the manager's professional demeanor." Mien is a somewhat literary term referring to both bearing and demeanor. "A mien of supreme self-satisfaction" is a typical use. Mien and demeanor are also linked through etymology. Mien arose through the shortening and alteration of the verb demean, which comes from the Anglo-French demener ("to conduct"), a combination of the de- prefix with mener ("to lead") that is also the root of demeanor. In this case, demean means "to conduct or behave (oneself) usually in a proper manner," not "to degrade." That other demean is a distinct word with a different etymology.
Synonyms
- appearance
- aspect
- dress
- figure
- garb
- look
- outside
- presence
- regard [archaic]
Example Sentences
Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 8 Sep. 2022 Balancing these two competing motivations—settling Gomez in reality, while elevating Mabel’s own mien—gave the designer an intriguing challenge. Lauren Puckett-pope, ELLE, 7 Dec. 2020 Every funnyman has his calling card, and Sam Richardson’s is a mien of indefatigable bafflement. The New Yorker, 29 May 2022 His Mickey is pleasantly mumbly, with a hangdog mien that’s often crosscut with a don’t-underestimate-me swagger. Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 16 May 2022 Their rabbi, Samuel Rosenblatt, had a scholarly mien and a formal manner. Jonathan M. Pitts, baltimoresun.com, 1 Mar. 2022 The worst-case scenario, according to a SAGA official named Berit (Ane Skumsvoll), who has the mien of a concerned high-school principal, is that Norway’s entire Western coast will be devastated. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 22 Feb. 2022 With his deadpan mien and dark eyes that shift fluidly between blank and befuddled, Scott is a superb fit for Severance's central everyman. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 7 Feb. 2022 The Forester's unhurried mien recalls an old Land Rover Discovery or an FJ80 Land Cruiser in a lot of ways—tall and upright, great outward visibility, nicely appointed cabin, deliberate in its responses. Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 16 Dec. 2021 See More Word History
by shortening & alteration from demean entry 2
circa 1522, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
mien
noun
mien
noun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- look
- demeanor
- attitude
- presence
- manner
- appearance
- garb
- aspect
- dress
- posture
- outside
- stance
- behavior
- person
- regard
- figure
- deportment
- poise
- cut of one's jib
- visage
- air
- shape
- pose
- comportment
- bearing
- countenance
- face
- carriage
- complexion
- mold
- physiognomy
- coloring
- cast
- color
- habitus
- features
- turn
- habit
- superficies
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of mien are bearing, carriage, demeanor, deportment, and manner. While all these words mean "the outward manifestation of personality or attitude," mien is a literary term referring both to bearing and demeanor.
In some situations, the words bearing and mien are roughly equivalent. However, bearing is the most general of these words but now usually implies characteristic posture.
While in some cases nearly identical to mien, carriage applies chiefly to habitual posture in standing or walking.
The words demeanor and mien can be used in similar contexts, but demeanor suggests one's attitude toward others as expressed in outward behavior.
Although the words deportment and mien have much in common, deportment suggests actions or behavior as formed by breeding or training.
While the synonyms manner and mien are close in meaning, manner implies characteristic or customary way of moving and gesturing and addressing others.