grin and bear it
RELATED IDIOMS :
grin and bear it
suffer pain or misfortune in a stoical manner
The usual modern sense of grin is less sinister than its earliest senses when it entered the language. It primarily meant an act of showing the teeth or a snarl. From the mid 17th century to the mid 18th century, a grin was generally used in a derogatory way or in unfavourable contrast to a cheerful smile. The sense of grin in grin and bear it retains the earlier associations with showing your teeth in a grimace of pain or anger. Grin and abide is recorded as a proverb in the late 8th century. The modern version dates from the late 19th century.
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