Meanings
verbsay cheese (third-person singular simple present says cheese, present participle saying cheese, simple past and past participle said cheese)
present singular third person says cheese · participle present saying cheese · participle past said cheese · past said cheese
- idiomaticimperativeTo smile for a photograph by saying the word "cheese" (the vowel of which, when pronounced as is usual in English, forces a somewhat smile-shaped mouth).
Danny watched the birdie and said cheese, and then it was over and the wait began. Danny would wait for weeks in anticipation of the day the final product was passed out by his teacher Miss Turner.
2008, Tim Connelly, The Local News, page 41
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 茄子
- 茄子 (qiézi)elicit a smile from someone for a photograph
Finnish sano muikku
- sano muikkuelicit a smile from someone for a photograph
Japanese チーズ
- チーズ (chīzu)elicit a smile from someone for a photograph
Portuguese dizer xis
- dizer xiselicit a smile from someone for a photograph
Vietnamese cười lên nào
- cười lên nàoelicit a smile from someone for a photograph
Cite this entry
APA
say cheese. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/say%20cheese
MLA
“say cheese.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/say%20cheese. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “say cheese,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/say%20cheese.
Source: say cheese on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.