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Definition of sarcasm
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sarcasm was our Word of the Day on 03/27/2017. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Examples of sarcasm in a Sentence
“That was my favorite show yet this tour,” Banks says. “I love audiences that are ambivalent.” For a second, I think he's laying on the sarcasm, until he continues. “I really like the chance to win people over.” —David Peisner, Spin, August 2007
“The best part of being single,” Bryce Donovan jokes, “is being able to choose any woman I want to shoot me down.” Such self-deprecating sarcasm is the trademark of this newsman's four-year-old weekly column “It Beats Working” in the Charleston Post and Courier. —People, 26 June 2006
“But see,” I say … “in my line of work I'm supposed to dress in a way that makes clients feel sorry for me, or better yet superior to me. I think I accomplish that pretty well.” Paul looks over at me again with a distasteful look that might be ready to slide into sarcasm, only he doesn't know if I'm making fun of him. He says nothing. —Richard Ford, Independence Day, (1995) 1996
a voice full of sarcasm
I know you're not happy, but there's no need to resort to petty sarcasms to make your point.
Recent Examples of sarcasm from the Web
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The singer handled the performance with the right amount of sarcasm, making for a song that just narrowly missed the chart pinnacle.
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That was written in invisible sarcasm font, by the way.
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Sutherland conveys fierce anguish and sharp sarcasm as the mother.
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Adding a little smiley face or winking eye can convey joking or sarcasm.
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O'Connell as Hannibal, an unemployed statistician who's lost his job to a calculator, juggles kindness and sarcasm on a dime; his awful violin noises never fail to tickle.
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This attitude is not to belittle the horror of Saturday—or what recently happened in Manchester and outside Parliament, either—but a small dose of sarcasm is how us Brits choose to cope in a time of crisis.
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Kiffin garners attention with his deadpan sarcasm or his noticeable Twitter presence or his scholarship offers to middle schoolers.
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Zedler replied with a note of sarcasm when asked about the bill deficit, blaming the House leadership for letting Freedom Caucus bills die in committee.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sarcasm'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
What is the Origin of sarcasm?
If you've ever been hurt by a remark full of cutting sarcasm, you have some insight into the origins of the word. "Sarcasm" can be traced back to the Greek verb sarkazein, which initially meant "to tear flesh like a dog." "Sarkazein" eventually developed extended senses of "to bite one's lips in rage," "to gnash one's teeth," and eventually "to sneer." "Sarkazein" led to the Greek noun sarkasmos, ("a sneering or hurtful remark"), iterations of which passed through French and Late Latin before arriving in English as "sarcasm" in the mid-16th century. Even today sarcasm is often described as sharp, cutting, or wounding, reminiscent of the original meaning of the Greek verb.
Origin and Etymology of sarcasm
French or Late Latin; French sarcasme, from Late Latin sarcasmos, from Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein to tear flesh, bite the lips in rage, sneer, from sark-, sarx flesh; probably akin to Avestan thwarəs- to cut
Synonym Discussion of sarcasm
SARCASM Defined for English Language Learners
sarcasm
playDefinition of sarcasm for English Language Learners
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: the use of words that mean the opposite of what you really want to say especially in order to insult someone, to show irritation, or to be funny
SARCASM Defined for Kids
sarcasm
playDefinition of sarcasm for Students
: the use of words that normally mean one thing to mean just the opposite usually to hurt someone's feelings or show scorn
Learn More about sarcasm
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See words that rhyme with sarcasm Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for sarcasm Spanish Central: Translation of sarcasm Nglish: Translation of sarcasm for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of sarcasm for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sarcasm
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