11.   At the courthouse Thursday, both sides struggled to put the best face on compromises that clearly amounted to a retreat from the angry exchanges that preceded the trial.

12.   At practice Tuesday evening, everyone was trying to put the best face on a bad situation.

13.   Aware that his job hangs by a thread, he tried to put the best face on the performance for the home audience.

14.   Before and after the vote to expand the scope, Senate critics sought to put the best face on the situation.

15.   Bill Plante of CBS News put the best possible face on the new jamboree format.

16.   ABC sales executives put the best face on their results.

17.   After a round of difficult talks on Thursday, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov put the best face on their meeting.

18.   Bush also sought to put the best possible face on a month of U.S.-led air strikes against Taliban positions in Afghanistan.

19.   But at a news conference after the rebuke, Ms. Babbitt attempted to put the best face on the vote and to mend some fences.

20.   But each president decided to put the best face on an unclear situation and wait to see whether his adversary would go along.