Face

Hello All!
I hope you had a satisfying weekend.

Today's subject is expressions with face.

Poker face
Lately, many people are asking me how to use the expression, "Poker Face" (Thank you, Lady Gaga), so I would like to explain that first. You have a poker face when you are trying to hide your true emotions. In the game poker, you don't want people to know what's in your hand, so you hide your happiness or disappointment. In a similar fashion, there are times when you don't want people to know what you're thinking. Look at these examples:

#1) I told her I loved her, but she didn't show her emotion. She wore a poker face as she listened to me.
#2) I heard a rumor about massive firings at work. When I questioned my boss, he put on a poker face and said that he couldn't tell me anything.


Saving Face
When you try to save yourself from shame, embarrassment or humiliation, this is called saving face. This can involve a very serious situation, or minor embarrassment. For example:

#1) The man tripped in the middle of the street. He tried to save face by pretending he did it on purpose.
#2) The son betrayed his family. In order to save face, the father disowned his son and kicked him out of the house.

To Face (Your Fears)
When you use "face" as a verb, it literally means "to look towards". However, sometimes it means to deal with a situation courageously. Look at the following examples:

#1) The sofa in our living room faces the TV.
#2) The window to our apartment faces the river, so we have an excellent view.

#3) Everybody faces challenges within their life.
#4) If you are afraid of something, you can only improve by facing those fears.
#5) I've faced many hardships throughout my life.
#6) I can't face another day at work.


Face-to-Face
Lastly, face-to-face has the exact same meaning as "in person." However, it is not the same as "one-on-one", which only includes two people. Sometimes, face-to-face implies two people, but it can be more people. Look at these examples:

#1) I need you to understand the situation perfectly, which is why we're talking face-to-face now.
#2) I have news to tell you, but I want to wait until we can meet face-to-face.