joke
noun
\
Definition of joke
(Entry 1 of 2)
joke
verbKeep scrolling for more
Other Words from joke
Verb
\
adverb
Synonyms for joke
Synonyms: Noun
boff (or boffo), boffola, crack, drollery, funny, gag, giggle [chiefly British], jape, jest, josh, laugh, nifty, one-liner, pleasantry, quip, rib, sally, waggery, wisecrack, witticism, yuk (or yuck) [slang]
Synonyms: Verb
banter, chaff, fool, fun, gag, jape, jest, jive, jolly, josh, kid, quip, wisecrack, yuk (or yuck) [slang]
Visit the Thesaurus for More
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 Web: Noun
The dreamy space feels less like a restaurant than an exclusive house party you were invited to by mistake or as a cruel joke. — Fortune, "Review: Patience Is a Virtue Well-Rewarded at this New Orleans Hotel Bar," 14 July 2019 And the places that serve the stuff are key venues for social exercises—storytelling, gossip, and joke sharing—that boost endorphins, lifting one’s mood, much like a drug. — Lila Maclellan, Quartz at Work, "Why you should totally go to the pub with your mates when you’ve just been laid off," 8 July 2019 Blessed with the wondrous talents of Alex Iwobi and Henrikh Mkhitaryan last season (that's a joke), Arsenal's most potent winger turned out to be their striker and top scorer in the end. — SI.com, "Arsenal Targets: Comparing the Gunners' Rumoured Forward Options This Summer," 7 July 2019 The Colorado pitching staff, however, has been a bad joke. — Mark Kiszla, The Denver Post, "Kiszla: All-star David Dahl a smash hit for Rockies, but can Blake Street Bombers 2.0 slug their way to playoffs?," 30 June 2019 People need to immediately realize this is not a joke. — Julia Alexander, The Verge, "YouTuber Etika’s death spurs conversation about how viewers react to creators’ mental health struggles," 27 June 2019 Without prior knowledge, the context, inside jokes, vague references, characters and brief snippets of scenes would be impossible to fully understand. — Pomerado News, "REVIEW: ‘Puffs’ is magical fun for Harry Potter fans," 26 June 2019 The Verge] Washington’s first attempt at regulating Big Tech is a joke. — Samantha Oltman, Vox, "Recode Daily: Soon you might know exactly how much you’re worth to Facebook," 24 June 2019 There is a joke that was especially popular in the harsh years following the collapse of the USSR. — Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, "Russians embrace Soviet ideals – by not paying their gas bills," 30 Jan. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Astronauts share a meal before their historic mission The night before their ascent into space, Apollo 11's three astronauts appeared calm, laughing and joking while sharing dinner with a large group. — Victoria Albert, CBS News, "Apollo 11 launch: Watch the most memorable moments from CBS News' coverage," 16 July 2019 The Washington Post questioned what would happen if public intrigue were to supersede the obvious joking tone of the post. — Sarah Midkiff, refinery29.com, "What Is The Raid On Area 51 & Will A Million People Really Storm It To See Aliens?," 15 July 2019 The number of candidates has drawn joking comparisons to the national presidential race, in which 25 Democrats are vying for a chance at the oval office. — Kathleen Mcwilliams, courant.com, "Five mayoral hopefuls vie for endorsement from Middletown Democrats," 15 July 2019 Gutfeld read Trump's reprehensible tweets in a jovial fashion, laughing and joking throughout. — Brian Stelter, CNN, "Murrow's words from 1954 apply to the Trump age: 'We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty'," 15 July 2019 This past Tuesday, as the Nuggets prepared to play the Celtics in their second Summer League game, Porter stood among his teammates laughing and joking. — Mike Singer, The Denver Post, "Nuggets’ Michael Porter Jr. on social media: “People act like you’re not human”," 13 July 2019 Conan O’Brien joked last night on his TBS talk show Conan after Kumail Nanjiani bailed less than an hour before he was supposed to appear. — Caroline Tew, EW.com, "Watch how Conan hilariously handled it when Kumail Nanjiani had to cancel his appearance last minute," 12 July 2019 Obviously, having a stalker is no joking matter, but stalker movies are just so fascinating and terrifying. — Abby Gardner, Glamour, "The Trailer for Netflix’s New Thriller Secret Obsession Is Serving Major Lifetime Vibes," 8 July 2019 Hunt joked that his meds were keeping him calm Saturday. — Michelle L. Quinn, Post-Tribune, "With the help of friends, Iraq war veteran gets motorcycle sidecar for service dog," 5 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'joke.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for joke
joke
noun
English Language Learners Definition of joke
(Entry 1 of 2)
joke
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of joke (Entry 2 of 2)
See the full definition for joke in the English Language Learners Dictionary
joke
noun
\
Kids Definition of joke
(Entry 1 of 2)
joke
verbKids Definition of joke (Entry 2 of 2)
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on joke
What made you want to look up joke? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
What's that Smell?! Quiz
-
- Someone who is hircine smells like a:
Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share joke
Resources for joke