Definition of RIDICULOUSLY

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 of ridiculous from the Web

The federal law that equates pot with meth is ridiculous on its face.

— logan jenkins, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Fairground bombs pot expo, but in Vista, protest is a piece of cake", 2 June 2017
Perkins said Cason's account, which included Woods putting the 10 mm pistol into her shirt at the farm, was ridiculous.

— ruth ann krause, Post-Tribune, "Gary mother of 7 found guilty in 2015 kidnap, murder of teen brothers", 2 June 2017
If that's too lofty a comparison to rationalize the losses of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, which James almost overcame in 2015 with a ridiculous performance, then how about Ron Harper and Toni Kukoc?

— k.c. johnson, chicagotribune.com, "Michael Jordan vs LeBron James: How can you choose a winner?", 31 May 2017
A spokesman for his union called the charges ridiculous.

— colleen long and jennifer peltz | ap, Washington Post, "NY officer charged with murder in mentally ill woman’s death", 31 May 2017
The Orioles struck out 13 times, which might seem like a lot but isn’t a ridiculous number by their free-swinging standards.

— eduardo a. encina, baltimoresun.com, "Well said: Orioles are 'swinging at a lot of pitches we probably can’t do much with'", 28 May 2017
Glover has superior stuff — a triple-digit fastball and a ridiculous wipeout slider that can sit in the mid-90s.

— ryan divish, The Seattle Times, "Major-league teams needing relief should look at these five arms", 27 May 2017
The article on the Beatles is ridiculous and absurd.

— latimes.com, "Calendar Letters: An 'absurd' Beatles rethinking, and politicizing entertainment", 24 May 2017
Adding another person to the mix can get messy, goofy, and ridiculous.

— rose surnow, Cosmopolitan, "Threesome", 16 Nov. 2016

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

Origin and Etymology of ridiculous

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

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First Known Use: 1550

See Words from the same year

ridiculous Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of 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

ridiculous