1
a
: something said or done to provoke laughter
especially
: a brief oral narrative with a climactic humorous twist
b(1)
: the humorous or ridiculous element in something
(2)
: an instance of jesting : kidding
can't take a joke
c
d
2
: something not to be taken seriously : a trifling matter
consider his skiing a joke—
Harold Callender
—often used in negative constructionsHarold Callenderit is no joke to be lost in the desert
Synonyms
Examples of joke in a Sentence
Noun
She meant it as a joke, but many people took her seriously.
They played a harmless joke on him.
They are always making jokes about his car.
I heard a funny joke yesterday.
the punch line of a joke
I didn't get the joke.
That exam was a joke.
Their product became a joke in the industry.
He's in danger of becoming a national joke.
Verb
My friends would joke about the uniform I had to wear at work.
She joked about the possibility of losing her job.
I thought he was joking when he said he might quit, but it turned out that he really meant it.
Don't take it seriously: I was only joking.
She spent a few minutes joking with reporters after giving her speech.
She joked that she could always get work as a truck driver if she lost her job.
Recent Examples on the WebAaron Mahnke, People.com, 27 Oct. 2024
To paraphrase an old baseball joke, the Dodgers are 25 guys who want to fit into one Uber, while L.A. remains a city of neighborhoods that each rides in its own car while not even knowing that others exist.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2024
Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 28 Oct. 2024
And are there anything jokes folk outside of Britain won’t catch?
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for joke 
Noun
This later became a kid-only experience, where these children dressed up in costumes and — after knocking on a door — traded a song, a poem or a joke for a snack.
—Aaron Mahnke, People.com, 27 Oct. 2024
To paraphrase an old baseball joke, the Dodgers are 25 guys who want to fit into one Uber, while L.A. remains a city of neighborhoods that each rides in its own car while not even knowing that others exist.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2024
Verb
Some folks joked that the statue looked like a plethora of other famous Black people like Laurence Fishburne, Antoine Walker, and even some white people like Kelsey Grammer.
—Marc Griffin, VIBE.com, 28 Oct. 2024
And are there anything jokes folk outside of Britain won’t catch?
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for joke
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'joke.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near joke
Cite this Entry
“Joke.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/joke. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
joke
1 of 2 noun1
a
: something said or done to cause laughter
especially
: a brief story with a humorous twist
b
: the humorous element in something
c
: good-natured kidding
can't take a joke
2
: something not to be taken seriously
that exam was a joke
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