: marked by an impassive matter-of-fact manner, style, or expression
a deadpan comedy
: in a deadpan manner : without emotion : blankly
Larry David started out in the 1970s doing stand-up in comedy clubs such as Catch a Rising Star, where if he came out on stage and did not like the audience he would stare at them deadpan … and walk off.—
Lee Siegel
Lee Siegel"A sex and violence weekend?" "That's two weekend ideas, actually," Derbin replies deadpan.—Judith Miller
Judith Miller1
: a deadpan manner of behavior or presentation
2
: a completely expressionless face
Synonyms
Examples of deadpan in a Sentence
Adjective
he delivered the joke in such a deadpan voice that we thought at first that he was serious
Noun
He tells the joke in his best deadpan.
She's a master of deadpan.
Verb
“I went back to doing push-ups again, and this time I almost completed one,” he deadpanned.
Recent Examples on the Web
Selome Hailu, Variety, 19 Jan. 2023
Wet Leg, with its deadpan wit and post-punk guitar sound, loosely resembles the B-52s, if Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson had led the band.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 16 Jan. 2023
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
If that sounds less than promising, even for a deadpan Romanian slice-of-life tragicomedy, go ahead and make the mistake of skipping this one.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 3 Dec. 2024
Larry Fitzmaurice, Vulture, 8 Apr. 2024
Benavidez deadpans into the a house microphone.
—José M. Romero, The Arizona Republic, 26 Mar. 2023
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Adjective
Working with high ranking creatives and executives including Douglas Fairbanks, Joseph M. Schenck and Edward F. Cline, he became known for performing exaggerated stunts and physical comedy with a deadpan facial expression.
—Selome Hailu, Variety, 19 Jan. 2023
Wet Leg, with its deadpan wit and post-punk guitar sound, loosely resembles the B-52s, if Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson had led the band.
—John Seabrook, The New Yorker, 16 Jan. 2023
Noun
The real history of that corpse is a true-in-a-way-that’s-unbelievable yarn, heightened by Yazbek and Della Penna’s concisely deadpan music and lyrics.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
If that sounds less than promising, even for a deadpan Romanian slice-of-life tragicomedy, go ahead and make the mistake of skipping this one.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 3 Dec. 2024
Verb
Larry deadpans when Jeff arrives in full cowboy attire.
—Larry Fitzmaurice, Vulture, 8 Apr. 2024
Benavidez deadpans into the a house microphone.
—José M. Romero, The Arizona Republic, 26 Mar. 2023
See all Example Sentences for deadpan
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Dictionary Entries Near deadpan
Cite this Entry
“Deadpan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deadpan. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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