facetious
Americanadjective
-
not meant to be taken seriously or literally.
a facetious remark.
-
amusing; humorous.
-
lacking serious intent; concerned with something nonessential, amusing, or frivolous.
a facetious person.
adjective
-
characterized by levity of attitude and love of joking
a facetious person
-
jocular or amusing, esp at inappropriate times
facetious remarks
Usage
A term labeled Facetious in this dictionary is one that is used consciously for humorous or playful effect.
Related Words
See humorous 1.
Other Word Forms
- facetiously adverb
- facetiousness noun
- nonfacetious adjective
- nonfacetiously adverb
- nonfacetiousness noun
- unfacetious adjective
- unfacetiously adverb
- unfacetiousness noun
Etymology
Origin of facetious
First recorded in 1585–95; from Middle French facecieux, facetieux, from facetie “a jest,” from Latin facētia “a jest, witticism” ( facetiae ) + -ious
Compare meaning
How does facetious compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
D’Aquino’s defense: She had been slyly subverting the propaganda machine the whole time, entertaining Americans with facetious language no one could take seriously and introducing upbeat American music the GIs actually loved.
From Los Angeles Times
Claire, I know this sounds like I’m being facetious, but I do feel like it’s a detail that says a lot about Aggie and her headspace at the time.
From Los Angeles Times
"I thought it was better to put the country ahead of my interest, my personal interest. I’m not being facetious. I’m being deadly earnest about that."
From Salon
Bong walks a delicate line between being facetious and pulling his punches, and the script does sometimes fall to the latter side with some of its more trite resistance messaging.
From Salon
“And I’m not being facetious, like just bring extra underwear,” he said.
From Seattle Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
