saving face

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In that scene from “Grease,” Danny excitedly greets his summer sweetheart Sandy, before quickly playing it too cool and aloof, saving face for his T-Birds greaser squad.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 30, 2025

Cooke leaders proved to be bad actors at every turn, more concerned with saving face than taking accountability.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 22, 2023

It is possible that Mr Musk is buying himself some time and saving face, ahead of a court case that many predicted he was unlikely to win.

From BBC • Oct. 5, 2022

In the end, Abe was cast as having made the postponement proposal, thus saving face.

From Washington Times • Mar. 27, 2020

Now that our father can see a way of saving face, he’s almost amiable.

From "Every Day" by David Levithan