1the front part of a person’s head from the forehead to the chin, or the corresponding part in an animal:she was scarlet in the face and perspiring profusely
an expression shown on the face:the happy faces of these children
an aspect of something:the unacceptable face of social drinking
2the surface of a thing, especially one that is presented to the view or has a particular function, in particular:
Geometry each of the surfaces of a solid:the faces of a cube
a vertical or sloping side of a mountain or cliff:the north face of the Eiger
the side of a planet or moon facing the observer:we can often see the dark face of the moon by earthshine
the front of a building:a series of loggias make up the face of the church
the plate of a clock or watch bearing the digits or hands:a dial like the face of a clock
the distinctive side of a playing card:she scattered a deck of cards face down
the obverse of a coin.
3 [with adjective] a person of a particular type:this season’s squad has a lot of old faces in it
1be positioned with the face or front towards (someone or something):he turned to face her
[no object, with adverbial of direction] have the face or front pointing in a specified direction:the house faces due east
[no object, with adverbial of direction] (of a soldier) turn in a particular direction:the men had faced about to the front
2confront and deal with or accept:honesty forced her to face facts [no object]:he was too old to face up to the responsibilities of his position
have (a difficult situation) in prospect:each defendant faced a maximum sentence of 10 years
(of a problem or difficult situation) present itself to and require action from (someone):the difficulties facing British farming
(face someone/thing down) overcome someone or something by a show of determination:he climbed atop a tank to face down a coup
3cover the surface of (something) with a layer of a different material:the external basement walls were faced with granite slabs
face down (or downwards)
with the face or surface turned towards the ground:he lay face down on his bed
someone's face fits
British someone has the necessary qualities for something:if your face didn’t fit they could get rid of you within twelve months
face the music
be confronted with the unpleasant consequences of one’s actions:we would later have to face the music over our bold moves
the face of the earth
used for emphasis, to refer to the existence or disappearance of someone or something:he’s just disappeared off the face of the earth
face up (or upwards)
with the face or surface turned upwards to view:place the panel face up before cutting
get out of someone's face
[usually as imperative]North American informal stop harassing or annoying someone:shut up and get out of my face
have the face to do something
British dated have the effrontery to do something.
in one's face
directly at or against one; as one approaches:she slammed the door in my face
in face (or the face) of
when confronted with:her resolution in the face of the enemy
despite:reform had been introduced in the face of considerable opposition
in-your-face
informal blatantly aggressive or provocative; impossible to ignore or avoid:an in-your-face advertising campaign
lose face
be humiliated or come to be less highly respected:the code of conduct required that he strike back or lose face
loss of face
humiliation:he could step aside now without loss of face
make (or pull) a face (or faces)
produce a facial expression that shows dislike or some other negative emotion, or that is intended to be amusing:Anna pulled a funny face at the girl
off one's face
informal very drunk or under the influence of illegal drugs:I had a great time going out clubbing and getting off my face
on the face of it
without knowing all of the relevant facts; apparently:on the face of it, these improvements look to be insignificant
put a brave (or bold) face on something
act as if something unpleasant is not as bad as it really is:he was putting a brave face on it but she knew he was shattered
put one's face on
informal apply make-up to one’s face:Paula spent two minutes putting on her face first thing
save face
avoid humiliation:allowing the guerrillas to save face and disarm
save someone's face
enable someone to avoid humiliation:he might be pretending to help her to save his face in front of Katarina
set one's face against
resist with determination:he had set his face against the idea
throw something back in someone's face
reject something in a brusque or ungracious manner:she’d given him her trust and he’d thrown it back in her face
to one's face
openly in one’s presence:if you’ve got something to say to me, say it to my face
face off
chiefly North American take up an attitude of confrontation, especially at the start of a fight or game:close to a million soldiers face off in the desert
