stiff upper lip
9
7.7
- idiom
:
mantener la compostura
- During the funeral, he maintained a stiff upper lip despite his deep sorrow.
- keep a stiff upper lip
- maintain a stiff upper lip
This is the Winston Churchill stiff upper lip.
- This is the Winston Churchill stiff upper lip.
- They've almost become badges of shame where people feel like it's wrong to have a stiff upper lip, to be strong minded, to be resilient, to be tough under pressure.
- And then that stiff upper lip BS is extended to others.
- And thick skin has to become a stiff upper lip.
- Again, one of those things I was raised to think British as Britishness was, was stiff upper lip.
Examples
-
In a remarkable example of stiff upper lip in the face of adversity, FitzRoy put the best possible spin on a personal disaster.
Academic text (1991) -
You, with your cheerfulness, your stiff upper lip, your valiant smile in the face of adversity.
Fiction book (1998) -
Be happy, and keep a stiff upper lip.
-
Now, now, my dear, keep a stiff upper lip.
-
So you just sit tight and keep a stiff upper lip.
-
Keep a stiff upper lip, old boy.
-
- My father just kept a stiff upper lip and continued his craft.
-
Stiff upper lip and all that.
Fiction book (2001) -
She believed in appearances, in the stiff upper lip, at least in public.
Fiction book (1996) -
The Wellbrights have always prided themselves on their stiff upper lip.
Fiction book (1999)
Synonyms
12
4.8
A face that shows no feeling so others cannot tell what you feel
9
5.2
A quiet way of acting that shows little emotion
8
8.2
Confidence and calm when you are under pressure
1
7.9
Staying calm and composed in difficult or stressful situations
1
6.9
A way of being careful and reserved about sharing personal thoughts or feelings
A state of showing little or no feeling
Antonyms
How Calm
Surface Forms
Morphology
Although the words 'stiff' (rigid), 'upper' (higher) and 'lip' (edge of the mouth) have clear literal meanings, those constituents do not transparently combine to yield the abstract sense of remaining calm and not showing emotion. This phrase is a culturally specific idiom (particularly British) whose figurative meaning is not directly predictable from the parts, so a B1 learner who knows the individual words would likely not infer its meaning without prior exposure.
Etymology
The idiom stiff upper lip comes from a simple image: people keeping their upper lip stiff and still so they do not show their feelings. One popular story says this idea grew in Britain, where soldiers and important people tried to look steady in hard times. That's why stiff upper lip means 'to remain calm and not show emotions'.