What does "farce" mean?
A style of humor marked by broad improbabilities with little regard to regularity or method.
Farce
/fɑːs/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A style of humor marked by broad improbabilities with little regard to regularity or method.
- Grammar: farce is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: travesty, a continental, a curse, a damn.
- Useful contrasts: alcestis, authenticity, classical greek tragedy.
- Usage evidence: Even before Reagan and the Supreme Court stifled it, OSHA was a farce.
How to use "farce"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "farce" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "farce" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "farce" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "farce" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "farce" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "travesty" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "farce", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A style of humor marked by broad improbabilities with little regard to regularity or method. uncountable
- 2 a comedy characterized by broad satire and improbable situations wordnet
- 3 A motion picture or play featuring this style of humor. countable
"The farce that we saw last night had us laughing and shaking our heads at the same time."
- 4 mixture of ground raw chicken and mushrooms with pistachios and truffles and onions and parsley and lots of butter and bound with eggs wordnet
- 5 A situation abounding with ludicrous incidents. uncountable
"The first month of labor negotiations was a farce."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 A ridiculous or empty show. uncountable
"The United States, he declared, was "a farce controlled by dirty, hook-nosed, circumcised Jew bastards.""
- 7 An elaborate lie. countable
- 8 Forcemeat, stuffing. countable, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To stuff with forcemeat or other food items. transitive
"The lunch […] consisted […] of […] lobster mayonnaise, cold game sausages, an immense veal and ham pie farced with eggs, truffles, and numberless delicious flavours; besides kickshaws, creams and sweetmeats."
- 2 fill with a stuffing while cooking wordnet
- 3 To fill full; to stuff. figuratively, transitive
"The first principles of religion should not be farced with school points and private tenets."
- 4 To make fat. obsolete, transitive
"[I]f thou would’ſt farce thy leane Ribs with it [pork] too, they would not (like ragged Lathes) rub out ſo many Dublets as they do: […]"
- 5 To swell out; to render pompous. obsolete, transitive
"farcing his letter with fustian"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 Alternative form of farse (“to insert vernacular paraphrases into (a Latin liturgy)”). alt-of, alternative
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Even before Reagan and the Supreme Court stifled it, OSHA was a farce."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "farce"?
Common synonyms include: travesty, a continental, a curse, a damn, a darn, a hoot.
How do you use "farce" in a sentence?
Even before Reagan and the Supreme Court stifled it, OSHA was a farce.
How do you pronounce "farce"?
Pronounced /fɑːs/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Middle French farce (“farce (style of humor); stuffing”) (in the latter sense, via Middle English fars, farsse), from Old French farse, from Medieval Latin farsa, from the feminine perfect passive participle of Latin farciō (“to stuff”). The theatre sense alludes to the pleasant and varied character of certain stuffed food items. Doublet of farse.
Etymology 2
From Middle English farcen, from Old French farsir, farcir, from Latin farciō (“to cram, stuff”). Doublet of farse.