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

Harry Kane was banging them in for fun, Christian Eriksen was regularly laying on chances for his teammates and, with arguably the best defence in the league, Tottenham were a joy to watch. — SI.com, "First Half Blitz Helps Tottenham Recapture Old White Hart Lane Buzz in 4-0 Crystal Palace Rout," 14 Sep. 2019 And along with new smartphones come a plethora of accessories from Apple, with Incipio, Otterbox and Anker joining the accessory fun. — Brittany Vincent, CNN Underscored, "From protection to power, here are iPhone 11 accessories you can order right now," 13 Sep. 2019 That's proof, the researchers believe, that the rats were just playing for fun. — Aj Willingham, CNN, "A sweet social media moment revealed, a wrong text gone right and...a telephone pole?," 13 Sep. 2019 Lab rats play hide-and-seek for the fun of it, new study shows Every child knows that a proper game of hide-and-seek must follow a strict set of rules. — Eva Frederick, Science | AAAS, "Top stories: Mountain-moving climate change, an oxygen-starved city, and rats playing hide-and-seek," 13 Sep. 2019 Three friends try to recapture the fun of their college years by starting their own off-campus fraternity. — Los Angeles Times, "Movies on TV this week Sept. 15, 2019: ‘Alien,’ ‘Aliens’ and more," 13 Sep. 2019 The fun seems to have started back on July 15th, 2019, when the Sulley-Core Facebook page uploaded an image that swapped the faces of Mike and Sulley, according to the Know Your Meme website. — Melissa Locker, Time, "The Stoic Mike Wazowski-Sulley Face Swap Reaction Meme Is a Monstrously Rollicking Good Time," 12 Sep. 2019 Back then, before the financial crisis interrupted the fun, Wall Street guys were making a lot of money, a decent amount of which found its way into the hands and under the G-strings of New York strippers. — New York Times, "‘Hustlers’ Review: Ripping Off the Suits," 11 Sep. 2019 Some are in it for the fun Business travelers may have initiated the demand for easier air travel between Africa and China, but flights today are increasingly serving leisure-seeking tourists. Chinese travel abroad has tripled in the past decade. — Youyou Zhou, Quartz Africa, "Why Chinese are traveling to Africa, and why Africans are traveling to China," 10 Sep. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Offerings range from classics like chicken milanese and bucatini carbonara, to fun new combinations like farro risotto and roasted shrimp with ajo blanco sauce. — SELF, "The Best Meal-Kit Delivery Services to Try in 2019," 1 Jan. 2019 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 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

And because the waterslides aren’t just fun for the kids, The Waterpark is opening its doors after hours exclusively to adults during its monthly Monon Mixers. — Natalia E. Contreras, Indianapolis Star, "10 things to do and try in Hamilton County before summer ends," 24 July 2019 Like the fantasies of Tolkien or Game of Thrones, Turanism can be fun. — Jacob Mikanowski, Harper's magazine, "The Call of the Drums," 21 July 2019 Put all of your effort into 40 hours per week of studying -- a solid 40 hours -- and schedule downtime and fun things, too. — Carolyn Hax, oregonlive, "Carolyn Hax: Solid help for freaking out law school student," 3 Sep. 2019 To mark the 25th anniversary of the sitcom, Warner Bros. Television is planning to install a replica of the sofa in Greenwich Village so that fans can pose on it for a fun photo op. — Rachel Yang, EW.com, "Friends: The one with New Yorkers protesting the orange sofa photo op," 2 Sep. 2019 Everyone seemed to love its fun spirit, glitter, and fancy clothes. — Brian T. Allen, National Review, "Time for a Riot: Camp Fashion at the Met, and a Real Riot at the Stonewall," 31 Aug. 2019 Practice letting go and breaking free of constraints through simple and fun exercises. — courant.com, "Community News For The Vernon Edition," 30 Aug. 2019 Moore’s injury was a sobering moment during an otherwise fun opener for the Knights, who had three different quarterbacks lead touchdown drives during a romp of the Rattlers. — Chris Hays, orlandosentinel.com, "UCF defensive back Brandon Moore still waiting to learn extent of leg injury," 29 Aug. 2019 The world in The Passengers only slightly differs from ours, which is what makes the book scary, in a perversely fun kind of way. — Hanna Kozlowska, Quartzy, "A new thriller novel offers up twisted scenarios of the tech revolution gone wrong," 28 Aug. 2019

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.