fun

noun

\ˈfən

Definition of fun

(Entry 1 of 3)

1 : what provides amusement or enjoyment specifically : playful often boisterous action or speech full of fun

2 : a mood for finding or making amusement all in fun

3a : amusement, enjoyment sickness takes all the fun out of life play games for fun

b : derisive jest : sport, ridicule a figure of fun They made fun of the way he talked.

4 : violent or excited activity or argument Insults were exchanged and then the fun began.

fun

verb

funned; funning

Definition of fun (Entry 2 of 3)

intransitive verb

: to indulge in banter or play : joke

fun

adjective

sometimes funner; sometimes funnest

Definition of fun (Entry 3 of 3)

1 : providing entertainment, amusement, or enjoyment a fun party a fun person to be with

2 : full of fun : pleasant have a fun time

Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym Can something be funner or funnest? More Example Sentences Learn More about fun

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Choose the Right Synonym for fun

Noun

fun, jest, sport, game, play mean action or speech that provides amusement or arouses laughter. fun usually implies laughter or gaiety but may imply merely a lack of serious or ulterior purpose. played cards just for fun jest implies lack of earnestness and may suggest a hoaxing or teasing. hurt by remarks said only in jest sport applies especially to the arousing of laughter against someone. teasing begun in sport led to anger game is close to sport, and often stresses mischievous or malicious fun. made game of their poor relations play stresses the opposition to earnest without implying any malice or mischief. pretended to strangle his brother in play

Can something be funner or funnest?

Adjective

Fun is a word which many people find does not live up to its definition, especially when it is used as an adjective (meaning “full of fun” or “amusing, enjoyable, pleasant”). In fact, there is a sizable portion of the English-speaking world which does not consider fun to be a proper adjective at all; these people feel that it is only a noun, which is why you sometimes hear that you should write “it was so much fun,” rather than “it was so fun.” It thereby stands to reason that if fun is not an adjective, it should not be used in the comparative and superlative forms of funner and funnest.

However, we do provide a definition for the adjectival use of fun, due to the fact that it has been used in such a fashion since at least the mid-1800s. We also list funner and funnest as comparative and superlative forms, due to the fact that these words are often employed in this manner (although we recognize that there are some who accept fun as an adjective, but feel that “more fun” and “most fun” are preferable). Including funner and funnest is not a directive that you should use these forms; it is a recognition of their existence, and you should feel free to use them or avoid them, as you see fit.

Examples of fun in a Sentence

Noun

I can't remember when I've had so much fun. Sickness takes all the fun out of life.

Verb

He's just funning with you. just a couple of old friends funning with each other

Adjective

Our vacation was a fun time. She's a fun person to be with. The park is a fun place to visit. We had a fun time at the movie.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The thing is, many of these games aren’t necessarily that fun to play anymore. — Andrew Webster, The Verge, "Making classic games more approachable should be the norm," 18 Nov. 2018 Getting any pimple on your face is no fun, but a painful one is even worse. — Yerin Kim, Seventeen, "Everything You Need to Know About Blind Pimples," 30 Oct. 2018 All three games are fun in different ways, and their inclusion turns the above deals into flat-out steals. — Brad Chacos, PCWorld, "Upgrade your gaming rig with these smoking-hot graphics card deals," 22 Oct. 2018 Fan theories are fun, but man, do people take them seriously. — Amanda Mitchell, Marie Claire, "Cole Sprouse Spills His Favorite 'Riverdale' Fan Theory in a Surprise Reddit AMA," 8 Oct. 2018 In fact, Russell was busted for having a bit too much fun in this house. — Becky Bracken, Real Estate News and Advice | Realtor.com®, "'Pawn Stars' Star Chumlee Cuts Price on His Las Vegas Party Pad," 2 Oct. 2018 But Republicans can never find a way to make fun of me, a middle-aged black woman named Fudge. — Rachel Withers, Vox, "Saturday Night Live mocks Laura Ingraham on voter fraud and vaping," 18 Nov. 2018 People who have a sense of rightness, people who play fair, people who clearly don't put their sexuality first and don't speak about women cruelly, or don’t make fun of men, or capitalize on their weaknesses. — Cady Drell, Marie Claire, "Mika Brzezinski Isn't Afraid to Say What You're Thinking," 24 Sep. 2018 My husband likes to make fun of me about my interior design skills back then. — Alyssa Fiorentino, House Beautiful, "3 Things Every Nursery Needs, According To 'The Hills' Star Whitney Port," 7 Sep. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Orca that carried dead, decomposing calf for weeks now returns to fun with friends. — Fox News, "FOX NEWS FIRST: Clues in stolen plane mystery; Omarosa's secret White House recording sparks security concerns," 13 Aug. 2018 The fundraiser will fun from Monday, October 1, through Sunday, October 7 — after that, 50% of proceeds will go to the same charities. — Leah Prinzivalli, Teen Vogue, "Lipslut Unveiled a 'F*ck Kavanaugh' Lipstick," 1 Oct. 2018 But here are some top spots to visit and fun things to do with your best friend. — Lainey Seyler, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "8 places you can bring your dog around Milwaukee this summer," 16 May 2018 Wide-open acceleration might fun, but slowing down that speeding hunk of metal is much more important. — Alex Leanse, Popular Mechanics, "10 Tire and Brake Problems All Drivers Need to Know," 23 Feb. 2017

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

The two-on-one date is never fun for anybody, except for maybe the show’s editor, who is grateful that finally something semi-dramatic will happen. — Rebecca Farley, refinery29.com, "The Bachelorette Season 14, Episode 5 Recap: Your Greatest Power," 26 June 2018 Talking to each other — about work or whatnot — was always fun for Nick and Ashley. — Philly.com, "Philadelphia weddings: Ashley Carnes-Carelock and Nicholas Lucente," 15 June 2018 Grease Sing-Along: Gorton kicks off their summer series with an American classic, their Grease sing-along, sure to be fun for the whole family. 7 p.m. Friday, Gorton Community Center, 400 E. Illinois Rd., Lake Forest, $10, 847-234-6060. — Lake County News-Sun, "Calendar: Summer Arts Festival this weekend in Lake Bluff," 11 June 2018 An impending encryption update should help make online payments much more secure, but won't be fun for retailers or Android device owners who haven't made the jump. — Brian Barrett, WIRED, "Security News This Week: Flash Gets in One More Security Fail Before Retirement," 10 June 2018 And with the Disney trivia feature, there’s sure to be something for everyone to enjoy as guests can discover fun facts about their favorite theme parks. — Shelley Caran, ajc, "Everything you need to know about Toy Story Land at Disney's Hollywood Studios," 29 June 2018 One was irresponsible, fun-loving, and musically gifted (Hilda) and the other was responsible, kind of uptight, and a scientist (Zelda)? — Jessica Macleish, Teen Vogue, "11 Differences Between "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina" and "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"," 26 Oct. 2018 Happy Together isn’t going to change your life, but its goofy, low-conflict stories about attractive people doing fun things together remind me just a bit of Wayans’s late, lamented sitcom Happy Endings. — Todd Vanderwerff, Vox, "4 new TV shows to try, from Halloween horror to the Flight of the Conchords," 5 Oct. 2018 He was remembered Tuesday as an exceptional police officer, a dedicated family man and a loud, fun-loving friend who lived life at 1,000 miles per hour. — Sara Jean Green, The Seattle Times, "‘He was the best of us’: Police and community honor fallen Kent Police Officer Diego Moreno," 31 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fun.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.