Meaning of expression in English

expression

noun

/ɪkˈspreʃ.ən/ us

/ɪkˈspreʃ.ən/

expression noun (SHOWING)

Add to word list Add to word list

B2 [ C or U ]

the act of saying what you think or showing how you feel using words or actions:

expression of He wrote her a poem as an expression of his love.

We've received a lot of expressions of support for our campaign.

freedom of expression Freedom of expression is a basic human right.

give expression to It's better to give expression to (= show) your anger, rather than hiding it.

find expression formal His sadness at the death of his wife found expression (= was shown) in his music.

She plays the violin with great expression (= feeling).

B2 [ C ]

the look on someone's face, showing what they feel or think:

I could tell from her expression that something serious had happened.

Mark always has such a miserable expression on his face.

More examplesFewer examples

I could tell from his grim expression that the news was not good.
He listened to the music with an expression of pure rapture on his face.
She looked at him with a surprised expression on her face.
Modernism seeks to find new forms of expression and rejects traditional or accepted ideas.
In this role, Durante is able to give full expression to that wonderfully virile voice.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Expressing and asking opinions

See more results »

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Expressing and showing feelings

The head & face

expression noun (WORDS)

B2 [ C ]

a word or group of words used in a particular situation or by particular people:

He uses a lot of unusual expressions.

"A can of worms" is an expression that means "a difficult situation".

More examplesFewer examples

The expression "boy band" was coined in the 90s.
There is no English equivalent for "bon appetit" so we have adopted the French expression.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Linguistics: sentences & expressions

See more results »

expression noun (NUMBERS)

[ C ] mathematics specialized

in mathematics, a symbol or group of symbols that represent an amount:

4xy2 is an expression.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Mathematical symbols

expression noun (GENETICS)

[ C or U ] biology specialized

the appearance of a characteristic or effect caused by a particular gene:

gene expression They tested the effect of calorie restriction on gene expression.

Differences between individuals can in part be attributed to the phenotype - the expression of our genes.

The scientists found 20 genes whose expression increased with age.

More examplesFewer examples

We study ageing, how DNA can be repaired, and how gene expression is regulated.
The team examined the expression of 80 genes in the cells.
The expressions of particular genes could explain why humans are far more different from chimpanzees than the overall difference in DNA sequence (around 1%) suggests.
I am interested in how different epigenetic processes interact to control gene expression in the brain.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Genetics

See more results »

(Definition of expression from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

expression | American Dictionary

expression

noun

/ɪkˈspreʃ·ən/

Add to word list Add to word list

[ C ]

a word or group of words having a particular meaning or used in a particular way:

That was an expression he hadn’t heard before, and wondered what it meant.

[ C ] mathematics

An expression is also a mathematical statement that includes numbers, symbols, or both.

expression noun (SHOW)

[ C/U ]

the act of showing a feeling or idea, or a feeling or idea that is shown:

[ C ] She had such a sad expression on her face that I wondered what was wrong.

[ U ] Freedom of expression is a cherished right in democracies.

(Definition of expression from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of expression

expression

Or does 'ordinary language' mean something different from a 'natural and easy way of expression'?

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Moreover, common expressions are open to multiple philosophical interpretations precisely because common expressions lack the precision aimed for (though not always achieved) by philosophical discourse.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Calling a controversy "pure" imports a value judgment into a task that should be - if you will pardon the expression - purely descriptive.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In all these buildings, the expression of the openings is reduced to create a unity of volume.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Communality is always stressed, while individuality is seen as a matter for internal expression.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The asymptotic solution (5.3) also be used to obtain expressions from (3.14)for can the fluctuating viscous stresses a t the wall.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The level of expression of the 6 isoform in the cells of the right bundle branch was always lower than that of the surrounding myocardium.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The efficiency is good if one considers that symbolic evaluation is employed on untyped expressions.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Another interesting aspect of the design is that the spreadsheet incorporates symbolic reduction and normalisation of symbolic expressions (including equations).

From the Cambridge English Corpus

It computes the symbolic size of each vector expression.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

We maintain this distinction here also, focusing on behavioral and verbal expressions of three kinds of caring themes: prosocial concern, reparation for wrongdoing, and affiliation.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

As such it is, among other things, an expression of the kingdom's expansion and of genealogical distance or proximity to the current ruler.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Coders were trained to mark the onset and offset of expressions reflecting low/moderate positive, high positive, low/moderate negative, and high negative affect.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Characterizing the discourse functions of linguistic expressions is surely one of the most difficult tasks in linguistic analysis.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Language can no longer be construed simply as a medium, relatively or potentially transparent, for the representation or expression of a reality outside itself.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

See all examples of expression

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with expression

expression

These are words often used in combination with expression.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

algebraic expression

An algebraic expression is given to estimate the timescale for breakup of viscous jets with large velocity modulations.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

artistic expression

The court was the modality of artistic expression.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

clarity of expression

The authors should strive for clarity of expression, avoiding, in particular, the use of jargon.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

See all collocations with expression

What is the pronunciation of expression?

Translations of expression

in Chinese (Traditional)

表示, 表達, 表露…

Meaning of expression in English

expression noun (SHOWING)

expression noun (WORDS)

expression noun (NUMBERS)

expression noun (GENETICS)

expression | American Dictionary

expression noun (SHOW)

Examples of expression

Collocations with expression

expression

Translations of expression

Browse

Learn more with +Plus

Learn more with +Plus