ironic
- 1Showing or involving irony of any kind, whether in words meaning the opposite of what they say or in events that turn out contrary to expectation.
The novel's ironic tone keeps undercutting its own grand pronouncements.
There was something deeply ironic about the safety inspector tripping over the warning sign.
Similarwry, sardonic, paradoxical, sarcastic, mocking
Oppositesincere, earnest, literal
Note
The core sense, borrowed through Late Latin īrōnicus from Greek eirōnikós and built, in English terms, as irony plus -ic. It usually passes judgment on a whole situation, framed as it is ironic that… or a trailing which was ironic. Steven Pinker's The Sense of Style (2014) gives a neat case: forgetting a textbook on human memory, where the event turns against its own subject.
- 2Strange or coincidental in a way that strikes one as remarkable, often used loosely where strict irony isn't present.
It seemed ironic that the rain held off until exactly the moment we finished packing up.
There's something ironic about losing your phone at a technology conference.
Similarcoincidental, strange, odd, curious, funny
Note
A usage that critics object to, in which ironic is stretched to cover mere coincidence. Eating a sandwich in Sandwich, Massachusetts, is a pleasing match of names, but nothing turns out contrary to expectation, which is what the strict sense requires. The loose use grew out of that sense and is common in casual speech. In careful writing, coincidental, odd or strange says the same thing without inviting correction.
- 3Done in an insincere, mocking way; satirical, so the gesture or words signal the opposite of sincere intent.
He offered an ironic bow to the audience that had just booed him off the stage.
The reviewer kept an ironic tone, praising the film's "genius" while clearly ridiculing it.
Similarmocking, sarcastic, sardonic, satirical, derisive
Oppositesincere, genuine, earnest, heartfelt
Note
Here the word describes the thing said or done rather than the person doing it: an ironic post, an ironic bow. It has a natural partner in unironic. AJ Willingham's 2019 CNN piece turns on that pair, warning that ironic hate speech eventually becomes the unironic kind. Where the teasing meaning describes someone at play, this sense describes what they produce, and the insincerity can serve as cover rather than a joke.
- 4Behaving in a teasing, unserious manner, saying things one doesn't literally mean for playful effect.
He's being ironic again, so don't take his complaints about the weather seriously.
When she called the budget meeting the highlight of her week, she was being ironic.
Similarsarcastic, facetious, teasing, tongue-in-cheek, flippant
Oppositeserious, sincere, earnest
Note
Mostly heard after being, in the progressive: we're just being ironic, he's being ironic again. The construction treats irony as something a person is doing at the moment, a passing performance rather than a fixed trait. That is why it so often arrives as a defense, paired with don't take it personally, to signal that the words were play and not meant in earnest.
Practice
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Origin
Borrowed from Late Latin īrōnicus, from Ancient Greek εἰρωνικός (eirōnikós); it can also be analyzed as irony plus the suffix -ic, and compares with Middle French ironique.