What does it mean when a guy stares at you and smiles, REALLY? Read on below and explore these 15 common meanings!
What Does it Mean When a Guy Stares at You and Smiles?
From simply wanting to get to know you and thinking you look familiar to wanting to smell you, taste you, or date you, here are the top meanings behind when a guy stares at you and smiles:
1. He Wants To Know You
One of the most common meanings behind a guy staring at you and smiling is that he wants to know you. Or, wants to know you BETTER than he currently does. If he makes eye contact with you, the chances are even higher he wants to learn more about you.
Whether you’ve been introduced, or he’s eyeballing you from across the room at a crowded bar if you don’t know him, and he’s smiling and staring at you, there are very high chances that he simply finds you attractive/interesting and is thinking about wanting to know you.
2. He Wants to Be Your Hero
If you already know the guy, and you catch him staring and smiling at you, he’s likely just been caught red-handed fantasizing about ways to be your hero. That’s right ladies, guys want to be your hero… even if you are just friends.
If you pay attention to their open body language, you can quickly pick such a situation out for what it is the next time a guy smiles and stares at you.
3. He Wants to Taste You
Single guys may spend a decent amount of time pondering how the women they’re interested in taste. How their mouth tastes, how their neck tastes, and of course, how more intimate areas taste.
If you catch him staring and smiling, and his face turns red, or his smile turns devilish, you’ve more than likely busted him thinking about how you taste.
4. He Wonders How You Smell
Many men also find themselves pondering how the woman they’re infatuated with smells. This leads to staring, deep-thinking, and possibly unconscious smiles surfacing while he tries to imagine your scent.
Again, if his face turns red when you notice him staring and smiling, he’s likely guilty of that accusation. Keep in mind, that even a good friend may wonder how you smell.
5. He’s Infatuated with You
When a guy is super-infatuated with you, he may stare at you, and smile, far more often than he’s aware. If his pupils dilate when you make prolonged eye contact, there’s a serious chance your attention is hitting him like a drug.
In the same breath, he may be fully aware and simply doesn’t care if you or anyone else catches him doing it. For men, few things are nearly as intoxicating as being intensely infatuated by a beautiful woman.
6. He Wants to Show Dominance
Depending on if you have a positive relationship with the guy or not, one meaning behind his staring and smiling at you could be that he wants to show you who is the dominant force in your relationship.
These stares and smiles could serve as a warning/promise of a kinky-fun-time in the bedroom… or they could have a more sinister meaning. Not everyone who stares and smiles at you means well for you, keep this little fact in mind the next time a random man stares.
7. He Wants to Know If You’ll Date Him
Sometimes guys that want to date you, but aren’t sure how you’ll feel about it, end up staring at you without even knowing they’re doing it. It’s likely to make them feel uncomfortable if you catch them in the act.
Often times these stares are accompanied by goofy smiles as the guy daydreams about you and him feeding each other grapes and fanning one another with palm leaves on some gorgeous desert island.
8. He’s Trying to Figure Out What Your Thinking
When a guy is staring at you and smiling, it is possible that he is actually in the process of trying to decipher your thoughts.

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That said, he may also be projecting fantasy thoughts as well (especially if he’s smiling a lot). So, whether he REALLY wants to know what you’re thinking, is anyone’s guess.
9. He’s Thinking How Beautiful You Look
One of the biggest possible meanings behind stares and smiles from men is that they are thinking of how beautiful you look.
And, before you try to argue, consider that beauty is genuinely in the eye of the beholder as much as it is the thing they are beholding. Meaning, if he thinks/believes you’re beautiful… who’s to say he’s wrong?
10. You Are His Muse
If the guy staring at you is a writer, musician, artist, or deep thinker, you may be his muse.
Whether he is literally memorizing the details of your face, or simply soaking up your character and presence to paint it later, it’s a good thing if he’s smiling, that means he’s pleased with you.
11. He Wants to Get Your Attention
Sometimes the meaning behind a guy staring at you and smiling is nothing more than him wanting to get your attention. If you catch him staring in this case, his smile may become even bigger and more radiant.
The reason he wants to get your attention, on the other hand, is a different story. He could want to introduce himself, get to know you, or possibly sneak away to the woodshed with you.
12. He is Unaware He’s Staring and Smiling
It happens all the time: the guy sees the amazing girl and can’t take his eyes off her. Try and try as he might, his eyes just keep going straight back to her.
Then, as if on cue, just as he begins to smile, she turns and notices him staring and smiling. Is he a perve? Should she be grossed out? Or is he simply an art-fan adoring a masterful work?
13. You Look Familiar to Him
Another significant reason behind stares and smiles from guys is that you look familiar to them, or remind them of someone specifically.
In fact, they may even think you ARE the person you remind them of, which would explain their friendly smile and open stare.
14. He’s Wondering What Sort of Person You Are
When a guy is really interested in you, and more than likely can’t stop thinking about you, when you catch him smiling and staring at you it may simply be that he is wondering what sort of person you are.
Are you the sort of girl he can bring home to meet mom and dad? Or the type that ends up with a furry butt-plug where the sun doesn’t shine, shackled to the workbench in his panic room (BDSM buddies, anyone?).
15. He Wants You to Be His Soulmate
It could simply mean that a guy is noticing an attractive female when you catch a guy staring and smiling at you. However, there is also a mild to strong chance that the guy staring and smiling at you secretly wants you to be his soulmate.
Factors like how deep and unshakeable his gaze is or how bright the light shining out from his eyes is may help clue you into this possibility.
How to Respond When a Guy Stares at You and Smiles
When a guy stares at you and smiles, there are a ton of great ways to respond. Of course, the best way for you to respond to a guy staring and smiling depends on how you feel about him, and the situation at hand.
Here are a few ways you can respond when a guy stares and smiles at you:
Stare Back at Him and Smile
Perhaps the most popular response to men smiling and staring, whether or not you are into them, is to stare back at him and smile.
If you ARE into them, you can follow up with any number of smooth moves of your own including winking, waving, or even directly approaching him.
In the case you don’t like him/aren’t interested, you’re letting him know you observed him and are politely ignoring him.
Approach Him and Start a Conversation
If you are into the guy that’s been staring and smiling at you, approaching him and starting up a conversation may be the greatest response there is.
If he’s really as interested as his gaze indicates, he’ll love you the moment you walk up and open your mouth to speak. Seriously. He may even propose marriage to you before the conversation ends!
Tell Him That a Picture Lasts Longer
Whether it’s from a place of flirtation, or the opposite when a guy is peeping at you hard and smiling at you, tell him “hey, do you want a picture? It lasts longer!”
Calling him an ***hole, or sweetheart sets the tone and lets him know whether you’re flirting or telling him to keep his eyes to himself.
Ask Him To Have a Drink With You
If you kinda like the way the guy is staring and smiling at you, consider asking him to have a drink with you (especially if you are currently out at a bar or club).
If you are in a more formal setting, ask him out for drinks some other time (set up a date with him).
Flip Your Hair and Forget Him
At the risk of turning the dirty little perv on even more than he has already been, eyeballing you and grinning about it, flipping your hair, turning your back, and tuning him out is a great choice of response to his gawking at you and smiling.
You may even opt to pretend that you never even noticed him, to begin with, which drives some guys plumb crazy.
Tell Him to Mind His Business
Don’t be afraid to tell a guy to mind his own business and keep his eyes to himself if he is bothering you by smiling and staring at you like some creep.
You could also mention that your boyfriend is the captain of the football team and he’s on his way here right now. The bad thing is that the idea may ruin the moment for him, or make you seem like a fun challenge.
FAQs
Why Would a Guy Stare at You and Smile?
There are countless reasons guys would stare at you and smile about it/while doing so. The 15 meanings listed above are a great place to start reading/understanding what these kinds of stares from men mean. Some of the main meanings are that he likes you, wants to know you, thinks you’re sexy, wants to sleep with you, or thinks you look familiar.
When Guys Smile and Look Into Your Eyes, What Does it Mean?
When a guy stares into your eyes and smiles, there are several potential meanings. A few of the most common is that he is thinking about how beautiful you are, pondering whether you’d date him or not, imagining how you look naked or even imagining how you taste or smell.
When You Catch a Guy Staring at You What is He Thinking?
Once caught gawking at you, especially if he was smiling when you busted him, there are quite a few things that could be running through his mind. He could be wondering if you’re thinking he’s crazy, or a perv. He could also be thinking about whether or not to approach you now that you’ve spotted him peeping at you from a distance.
When a Guy Look You Up and Down and Smiles, What Does it Mean?
For the most part, it’s pretty self-explanatory what’s happening when a guy looks you up and down and smiles about it: they are measuring you up, physically, and are pleased. Even more, they are most likely imagining you without clothes and possibly further fantasizing about how a romantic encounter with you might go.

My name is Jenny and I love helping people with their relationships. I believe a few simple tips can help people massively improve their communication skills with their partners and really express themselves. Thanks for visiting!
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