humour

American  

[hyoo-mer] / ˈhju mər /

noun

Chiefly British.

1. humor.

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humour British  

/ ˈhjuːmə /

noun

1. the quality of being funny

2. Also called: sense of humour.  the ability to appreciate or express that which is humorous

3. situations, speech, or writings that are thought to be humorous

4. 1. a state of mind; temper; mood

   2. ( in combination )

      ill humour

      good humour

5. temperament or disposition

6. a caprice or whim

7. any of various fluids in the body, esp the aqueous humour and vitreous humour

8. Also called: cardinal humour.  archaic any of the four bodily fluids (blood, phlegm, choler or yellow bile, melancholy or black bile) formerly thought to determine emotional and physical disposition

9. in a bad mood

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verb

1. to attempt to gratify; indulge

   he humoured the boy's whims

2. to adapt oneself to

   to humour someone's fantasies

Spelling

See -or ¹.

Other Word Forms

• humourlessness
  noun
• humourful
  adjective
• humourless
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of humour

C14: from Latin humor liquid; related to Latin ūmēre to be wet, Old Norse vökr moist, Greek hugros wet

Example Sentences

"Humour is power and a force for good because if you can laugh, particularly at yourself, you are some way to being able to make sense of things," she said.

From BBC • Jun. 29, 2026

Humour can be a powerful tool, and so I've turned my experiences into a comedy show about life with an embarrassing surname.

From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026

Humour can be a highly adapted defence mechanism, she says, which can make comedians more opaque than other contestants.

From BBC • May 14, 2025

"Humour has this unique ability to disarm people - it lowers their defences and allows them to consider issues from a fresh perspective," he said.

From BBC • Oct. 13, 2024

The company was presenting a play called Every Man Out of His Humour, which fit my mood exactly.

From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood