Rod Laver

It occurred to me that it would benefit me to play without emotion - well, without emotion others could see, anyway. Card players profited from having a poker face so opponents wouldn't know how good or bad their hand was, and I figured a deadpan expression would work in tennis, too.

Australian Athlete

Steven Wright

I never even thought of myself as deadpan until someone wrote an article about me about a year after I was doing comedy. There was a paper called the 'Boston Phoenix,' and someone wrote a description of what I was doing and that's where I first saw 'deadpan.

American Comedian

Kristin Gore

My dad has a dry, deadpan sense of humor, and my mom has an unexpected, wacky take on things. They really encouraged laughing at ourselves and the weirdness of situations that come up growing up in politics.

American Author

Deborah Meaden

When I concentrate, my face is deadpan and I can see there is a coldness there - when I'm making business decisions I know I can be quite dispassionate.

English Businesswoman

Patrick Warburton

So, deadpan I think just means not acknowledging for one second that you think that this is funny and clever.

American Actor

Ruth Ozeki

There's something about Vonnegut's deadpan irony that I really like. And I like Borges' puzzle structure.

Canadian Novelist

Katherine Dunn

Donald Westlake's lean prose and deadpan delivery are engaging, as always.

American Novelist

Edward Ruscha

I have no social agenda with my work. I'm deadpan about it.

American Artist

Carly Chaikin

I love playing a smart person and not that blonde deadpan.

American Actress

Martine Syms

I just have a deadpan sense of humor, I guess.

Use 'deadpan' when someone's serious expression contrasts with humorous or ironic content being shared.

Emotional Irony

'Deadpan' often signals that humor is present without the usual cues of laughter or smiles.

Unexpected Humor

A deadpan expression can make a funny situation funnier by creating a juxtaposition.

Comedic Effect

Use deadpan as a noun to describe a humorous delivery that is unexpectedly monotone or serious.

Surprise Punchline

Deadpan as a noun emphasizes timing; it's about when to reveal humor hidden in seriousness.

Contrast Timing

Adverbially, 'deadpan' means responding to something without letting emotions show, often to be funny.

Maintaining Composure

Use 'deadpan' adverbially to hide the obvious amusement or sarcasm in a response or action.

Humorous Disguise

As a verb, 'deadpan' shows subtlety in humor by keeping a straight face when something is funny.

Subtle Humor

When using 'deadpan' as a verb, be aware that the humor might be missed if taken literally.

Literal Misinterpretation

 and the pilot -- Russian pilot -- completely deadpan, replied, "Six hours -- if we live." We got to Khatanga. I think the joke is that Khatanga isn't the end of the world, but you can see it from there.