Ironically

//aɪˈɹɒnɪkli// adv

adv ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Adverb
  1. 1
    In an ironic manner; in a way displaying irony.

    "My colleague ironically avoids doctors like the plague!"

  2. 2
    Used to draw attention to an ironic aspect of a situation being described.

    "Ironically, the automated checkout system ended up costing more in repairs than the workers it was meant to replace."

Adverb
  1. 1
    in an ironic manner wordnet
  2. 2
    contrary to plan or expectation wordnet

Example

More examples

"Ironically it is war that has brought a great many useful inventions into being."

Etymology

From ironic + -ally.

More for "ironically"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.