carry oneself

present singular third person carries oneself · participle present carrying oneself · participle past carried oneself · past carried oneself

1. idiomaticTo move, especially emphasizing the manner in which one moves.

   He was carrying himself with less than his usual stoop.

   1915, E. Phillips Oppenheim, chapter 22, in Mr. Grex of Monte Carlo

   2 more examples

   [Y]et all the vvhile they are the tradeſmens vvives, they endeavour to preſerve the distinction of their fancied character; carry themſelves as if they thought they were ſtill above their ſtation, […]

   1725 (indicated as 1726), [Daniel Defoe], “Letter XXI. Of the Tradesman Letting His Wife be Acquainted with His Business.”, in The Complete English Tradesman, in Familiar Letters; Directing Him in All the Several Parts and Progressions of Trade. […], volume I, London: […] Charles Rivington […], →OCLC, page 363

   She was thin, but always carried herself bolt upright, and would never even lean back in her chair.

   1876 May – 1877 July, Anthony Trollope, “The Paragon’s Party at Bragton”, in The American Senator […], volume I, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1877, →OCLC, page 78

2. idiomaticTo behave, especially with respect to how one's speech, body language, facial expressions, and grooming convey one's opinion concerning oneself.

   [S]he carried herself with a little touch of hauteur—an air of aloofness, as it were.

   1921, Margaret Pedler, chapter 5, in The Splendid Folly

   1 more example

   "Do I not carry myself well in the hour of defeat?" / "You do, Your Majesty." / "Am I pale, Le B—?" / "No—no—oh, no, not at all, Sire." / "Tell me the truth, Le B—. We must not let the enemy find us broken when they arrive. How do I look? Out with it."

   1895, John Kendrick Bangs, chapter 11, in Mr. Bonaparte of Corsica

   Synonyms: bear oneself