make a face

make a face (third-person singular simple present makes a face, present participle making a face, simple past and past participle made a face)

1. (colloquial) To make a facial expression, often for humor, as a taunt, or to indicate distaste.
   • 1849, “Mr. Jolly Green's Account Of The Great Paris Excursion”, in W. Harrison Ainsworth, editor, The New monthly magazine‎^[1], volume 86, page 98:

     I looked at Tomkins to see whether, by chance, he had made a face at his lordship, ...

   • 2006 May 9, Penn Jillette, Michael Goudeau, quoting Pat, 34:52 from the start, in Penn Radio‎^[2]:

     I was at Park Safari Africa in Canada on the Canadian border. This was years ago outside of Plattsburgh, New York. And I had a new car at the time, and I was driving through, going through the monkey area. And they said 'beware of the monkeys.' So about ten of them circled my car. And this one special one, like he was the leader of the pack, jumped up on the hood and came right up to the windshield and looked in. So I was like making faces at him. [garbled] 'don't do that!' And believe it or not, he made like a face back. He jumped off the car. He took his fingernails and he peeled all the chrome on both sides of my car off. Picked it up, jumped on the hood, dropped it and left- looked at me and left.

• pull a face

• make eyes at
• make mouths at