ridiculous

[ri-dik-yuh-luhs]

adjective

1. causing or worthy of ridicule or derision; absurd; preposterous; laughable.

   a ridiculous plan.

   Synonyms: farcical, comical, droll, funny, ludicrous, nonsensical
   Antonyms: sensible

2. Slang.,  absurdly or unbelievably good, bad, crazy, etc..

   The concert was ridiculous, their best performance ever!

ridiculous

/ rɪˈdɪkjʊləs /

adjective

1. worthy of or exciting ridicule; absurd, preposterous, laughable, or contemptible

Other Word Forms

• ridiculously adverb
• ridiculousness noun
• ridiculosity noun
• hyperridiculous adjective
• hyperridiculously adverb
• quasi-ridiculous adjective
• quasi-ridiculously adverb
• unridiculous adjective
• unridiculously adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of ridiculous¹

First recorded in 1540–50; from Late Latin rīdiculōsus “laughable, droll,” equivalent to Latin rīdicul(us), adjective derivative of rīdiculum ridicule ( def. ) + -ōsus -ous ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of ridiculous¹

C16: from Latin rīdiculōsus , from rīdēre to laugh

Idioms and Phrases

see from the ridiculous to the sublime.

Synonym Study

See absurd.

Example Sentences

Schwarzenegger, in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, said he found that ad so ridiculous he laughed at his TV.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“MAGA Republicans couldn’t even look at a map before launching into this ridiculous investigation,” he said.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"To spend £75,000 of taxpayers' money on putting flags up seems a bit ridiculous to me. That should be spent on services."

Read more on BBC

“Yeah that used to be the case at the beginning of the year, just checked yesterday and $4.29, ridiculous,” user u/ghx16 wrote.

Read more on Salon

It is the job of the sports columnist to be ridiculous, to lard on sweaty superlatives and routinely declare the regrettable, but once in a while, we get it right.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• absurd 
• bizarre 
• fantastic 
• foolish 
• goofy 
• impossible 
• incredible 
• laughable 
• ludicrous 
• nonsensical 
• outrageous 
• preposterous 
• silly 
• unbelievable 
• wacky