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
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characterized by levity of attitude and love of joking
a facetious person
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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
Etymology
Origin of facetious
First recorded in 1585–95; from Middle French facecieux, facetieux, from facetie “a jest,” from Latin facētia “a jest, witticism” ( see facetiae) + -ious
Compare meaning
How does facetious compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Don’t take a facetious comment seriously because it’s supposed to be funny. Anything facetious is a joke. If you've just won a hotdog-eating contest and someone asks if you'd like to go out for burgers, they’re probably being facetious. If you forget how to spell facetious, notice that it has all five vowels in a row. The word facetious comes from the French facétie, “joke,” and it has come to describe a joke with a little drop of sarcasm. It used to simply mean “funny and witty,” but now it often implies that someone is being inappropriately funny about a serious topic.
Vocabulary lists containing facetious
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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.
Facetious skeptics suspect that psychiatrists are themselves psychiatric cases.
From Time Magazine Archive
It is plenty savvy in deploying plot devices from a dozen hoary genres while playing up the absurdities in the familiar Deadpan Facetious style.
From Time Magazine Archive
Facetious picnickers roll over the edge-rocks which may kill the unfortunates gathering grass—dreadful trade!—upon the dizzy ledges.
From To the Gold Coast for Gold A Personal Narrative in Two Volumes.—Volume I by Burton, Richard Francis, Sir
Suffenus, whom we both have known so well, No other man in manners can excel; Facetious, courteous, affable, urbane.
From The Knickerbocker, or New-York Monthly Magazine, February 1844 Volume 23, Number 2 by Various
Ze brave Picton 'e fall in ze arms of victoire—— Facetious Britisher.
From Mr. Punch on the Warpath Humours of the Army, The Navy and The Reserve Forces by Various
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.
