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definitions

funny

1
[fuhn-ee]
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR funny ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, fun·ni·er, fun·ni·est.

noun, plural fun·nies.

Informal. a funny remark or story; a joke: to make a funny.
funnies,
  1. comic strips.
  2. Also called funny paper.the section of a newspaper reserved for comic strips, word games, etc.

Origin of funny

1
First recorded in 1750–60; fun + -y1
Related formsfun·ni·ly, adverbfun·ni·ness, nounun·fun·ni·ly, adverbun·fun·ni·ness, noun

Synonyms for funny

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR funny ON THESAURUS.COM
1. diverting, comic, farcical, ridiculous, droll, witty, facetious, humorous. Funny, laughable, ludicrous refer to that which excites laughter. Funny and laughable are both applied to that which provokes laughter or deserves to be laughed at; funny is a colloquial term loosely applied and in popular use is commonly interchangeable with the other terms: a funny story, scene, joke; a laughable incident, mistake. That which is ludicrous excites laughter by its incongruity and foolish absurdity: The monkey's attempts to imitate the woman were ludicrous.

funny

2
[fuhn-ee]

noun, plural fun·nies.

a shell or light skiff rowed by one person with sculls.

Origin of funny

2
First recorded in 1790–1800; perhaps jocular use of funny1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for funny

whimsical, droll, ludicrous, playful, ridiculous, silly, amusing, hilarious, entertaining, absurd, unusual, strange, mysterious, curious, weird, bizarre, riot, gay, gas, humdinger

Examples from the Web for funny

Contemporary Examples of funny

Historical Examples of funny

  • Yet see now, these funny little animals on the surface of the spinning-ball.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • It's funny—that's exactly what I told Aunt Cornelia about that—that man.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • Let him talk, and hear you laugh when he was funny, and he was satisfied.

    Weighed and Wanting

    George MacDonald

  • Once she would have thought that that was funny; now it seemed very touching to her.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • Aunt is so funny, not to have guessed who wrote the Star article.

British Dictionary definitions for funny

funny

adjective -nier or -niest

causing amusement or laughter; humorous; comical
peculiar; odd
suspicious or dubious (esp in the phrase funny business)
informal faint or illto feel funny

noun plural -nies

informal a joke or witticism
Derived Formsfunnily, adverbfunniness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for funny
adj.

"humorous," 1756, from fun + -y (2). Meaning "strange, odd" is 1806, said to be originally U.S. Southern. The two senses of the word led to the retort question "funny ha-ha or funny peculiar," which is attested from 1916. Related: Funnier; funniest. Funny farm "mental hospital" is slang from 1962. Funny bone "elbow end of the humerus" is 1826; funnies "newspaper comic strips" is from 1852.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with funny

funny

In addition to the idioms beginning with funny

  • funny bone
  • funny business
  • funny money

, also see under

  • fun
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.