adj, noun, slang ·Common ·High school level
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"Irony, saying what it ne'er intends, Censures with praise, and speaks to foes as friends."
"And before the season's over millions of "glassies" and "aggies" or "ironies" will change hands, and thousands more will manage to get themselves lost."
"It is one of the ironies of capital cities that each acts as a symbol of its nation, and yet few are even remotely representative of it. London has always set itself apart from the rest of Britain — but political, economic and social trends are conspiring to drive that wedge deeper."
"The food had an irony taste to it."
"Tone of voice can indicate anger and irony."
The quality of a statement that, when taken in context, may actually mean something different from, or the opposite of, what is written literally; the use of words expressing something other than their literal intention, often in a humorous context.
Common synonyms include: sarcasm, afisr, agile wit, ambiguity, ambiguousness, ambivalence.
Tone of voice can indicate anger and irony.
Pronounced /ˈaɪə.ɹən.i/.
First attested in 1502. From Middle French ironie, from Old French, from Latin īrōnīa, from Ancient Greek εἰρωνεία (eirōneía, “irony, pretext”), from εἴρων (eírōn, “one who feigns ignorance”).
From Middle English hyrony, yreny, yrony, yrunny, equivalent to iron + -y.