1.
to beam with a smile; to break into a smile; to light up with joy
To let one's face relax into a warm, happy smile. The expression ほころばせる literally means 'to cause to come undone' or 'to loosen,' evoking the image of a face softening from a neutral or tense expression into a joyful one, like a flower bud opening.
彼女は顔をほころばせた。
She broke into a smile.
プレゼントを見て、子供は顔をほころばせた。
The child beamed when they saw the present.
久しぶりに孫に会えて、祖母は顔をほころばせた。
Seeing her grandchild for the first time in a while, the grandmother beamed with joy.
A literary and expressive way to describe someone's face breaking into a warm, genuine smile. The verb ほころばせる comes from ほころぶ (to come apart at the seams; to begin to bloom), giving the expression a poetic quality — like a flower opening. More descriptive and literary than simply 笑う (to laugh/smile).
COMMON PATTERNS:
- 顔をほころばせる: to beam (standard form)
- 顔がほころぶ: one's face breaks into a smile (intransitive variant)
- 思わず顔をほころばせる: to involuntarily break into a smile
SIMILAR EXPRESSIONS:
- 笑顔になる: to smile — straightforward and conversational
- にっこりする: to grin, to smile warmly — focuses on the cheerful quality of the smile
- 相好を崩す: to break into a broad smile — another literary expression; implies losing one's composure from happiness