jocund

[jok-uhnd, joh-kuhnd]

adjective

1. cheerful; merry; blithe; glad.

   a witty and jocund group.

   Synonyms: jolly, blithesome, joyful, joyous

jocund

/ dʒəʊˈkʌndɪtɪ, ˈdʒɒkənd /

adjective

1. of a humorous temperament; merry

Other Word Forms

• jocundly adverb
• quasi-jocund adjective
• quasi-jocundly adverb
• unjocund adjective
• jocundity noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of jocund¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English jocound, from Late Latin jocundus, alteration of Latin jūcundus “pleasant,” equivalent to ju(vāre) “to help, benefit, please, delight” + -cundus adjective suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of jocund¹

C14: from Late Latin jocundus, from Latin jūcundus pleasant, from juvāre to please

Synonym Study

See jovial.

Example Sentences

Of course, this is how it goes in “Romeo and Juliet” — the jocund pal of Romeo is stabbed by Tybalt, which leads Romeo to kill Tybalt, which leads to the lovers’ suicides.

From New York Times

The book would have paired Hughes’s fervent poem about the pain of subjugation with Brown’s jocund illustrations of a lion:

From New York Times

That was just one role Mr. Train played — the jocund hobbyist who ambled into bookish success.

From New York Times

The rest of the poem is about what “a jocund company” they make.

From Washington Post

That last part is a bit of cheek for effect, deleted quickly by a green cursor, a taste of the jocund energy that informs this six-part limited series.

From Salon