ridiculous

adjective

ri·​dic·​u·​lous rə-ˈdi-kyə-ləs 

: arousing or deserving ridicule : extremely silly or unreasonable : absurd, preposterous

wearing a ridiculous outfit

a ridiculous price for that little house

ridiculousness noun

Synonyms of ridiculous

• absurd
• silly
• pathetic
• stupid

Choose the Right Synonym for ridiculous

laughable, ludicrous, ridiculous, comic, comical mean provoking laughter or mirth.

laughable applies to anything occasioning laughter.

laughable attempts at skating

ludicrous suggests absurdity that excites both laughter and scorn.

a thriller with a ludicrous plot

ridiculous suggests extreme absurdity, foolishness, or contemptibility.

a ridiculous display of anger

comic applies especially to what arouses thoughtful amusement.

a comic character

comical applies to what arouses spontaneous hilarity.

a comical hat

Examples of ridiculous in a Sentence

His band mates take the stage in ridiculous elf costumes—black tights, pointy felt hats. —Jason Cohen, Rolling Stone, 23 Feb. 1995

I also poked fun at those ridiculous fins on the '59 Cadillac. The '60, now, that was something else, and I've thought highly enough of the design to have owned two of them. —Marshall Schuon, New York Times, 30 June 1991

Take into account the artist's intention and choice of means. This sounds so elementary that it seems ridiculous to bring it up … —Leonardo Shapiro, Village Voice, 27 Aug. 1991

It was absurd for him to paint portraits for pay, and ridiculous to paint them for nothing; so he did not paint them at all. —William Dean Howells, The Rise of Silas Lapham, 1885

She looks ridiculous in that outfit.

It was a ridiculous suggestion.

That's an absolutely ridiculous price for that sweater.

Recent Examples on the Web

Of course his trick memory, hyper-long career and borrowings of Pravda from the colleague codenamed CYCLOPS are frankly ridiculous, especially since the latter (don’t tell Venusian Cheney) bore two functional eyes. — Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026

Their idea—to leverage sensitive personal and business information contained in the servers for an enormous ransom—is both ridiculous and ingenious. — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026

And there was like that frugal DIY part of me that was like, ‘That’s ridiculous, man. — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2026

But then Ward threw his ridiculous interception to Holland, who now has a takeaway in all three games to start the season. — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 27 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin ridiculosus (from ridiculum jest, from neuter of ridiculus) or ridiculus, literally, laughable, from ridēre to laugh

First Known Use

1550, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ridiculous

• from the sublime to the ridiculous

Rhymes for ridiculous

• colliculus
• meticulous

Kids Definition

ridiculous

adjective

ri·​dic·​u·​lous rə-ˈdik-yə-ləs 

: causing or deserving ridicule : absurd, preposterous

ridiculously adverb

ridiculousness noun