From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsneersneer1 /snɪə $ snɪr/ verb [intransitive, transitive] MAKE FUN OFSMILEto smile or speak in a very unkind way that shows you have no respect for someone or something ‘Is that your best outfit?’ he sneered.sneer at She sneered at Tom’s musical tastes. —sneering adjective a sneering tone —sneeringly adverb→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
sneer• "I wouldn't be seen in public wearing that, " Janina sneered.• As she read the letter, she started to sneer.• Instead of helping, they just sat and sneered.• Camels sneered and lurched to their feet, crocodiles yawned like man-traps.• Hillary Clinton sneered at a llama that some one brought to a rally in Pennsylvania.• He wanted to prove something to the critics who had sneered at his paintings.• It is easy to sneer at the credulous pilgrims.• She'd not forgotten how Gareth had laughed and sneered at them when they'd first tried to be friendly.• He had shined on innumerable lessons, sneered at too many ideas, turned thumbs-down on the mind.• So many years a teacher, you know it all! she sneered, feeling her face twist grey and cold.• Some clients would sneer or smile sarcastically when I showed them my old laptop -- until they saw what it could do.sneer at• How can you sneer at vegetarians when you're wearing a leather jacket?sneersneer2 noun [countable] MAKE FUN OFSMILEan unkind smile or remark that shows you have no respect for something or someone ‘You probably wouldn’t understand, ’ he said with a sneer.Examples from the Corpus
sneer• He did not mention Labour and even refrained from a sneer at the opinion pollsters.• "And what's your name?" he demanded, his lip curling into a sneer.• "And who might you be?" he said with a sneer.• Associates introduced a new fund to invest in technology stocks amid sneers and snickers from analysts and rival fund groups.• The Prince smirked and Gaveston turned, for the first time acknowledging their presence with a condescending sneer.• Asked to do little more than dispense evil sneers at intervals, Sutherland does just that.• Yet the sneer, the attitude and a handy pair of sunglasses made it clear: The guy is cool.• The sneer had turned into a lump in his throat.• Cue for another collective Washington sneer at Los Angeles.• The training officer distracted them with sneers at their tameness.Origin sneer1 (1300-1400) Perhaps copying the action 