hilarity
Americannoun
-
cheerfulness; merriment; mirthfulness.
-
boisterous gaiety or merriment.
noun
Related Words
See mirth.
Other Word Forms
- hyperhilarity noun
Etymology
Origin of hilarity
1560–70; earlier hilaritie, from Latin hilaritās, equivalent to hilari(s) ( hilarious ) + -tās -ty 2
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.
In recent years, creator Bill Lawrence has struck chords with emotional, warm-hearted hits like “Ted Lasso” and “Shrinking,” but this is where his blend of heart and hilarity really came together.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 30, 2026
So is their occasional lapse into dry hilarity.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 23, 2025
The prime minister made the juggling hand gesture that accompanies the reference, prompting class-wide hilarity.
From BBC • Nov. 25, 2025
Cassandra Peterson understands the power of a movie night — or more specifically, the kind of movie night that wobbles between horror and hilarity, where the fake blood maybe gleams brighter than the budget.
From Salon • Oct. 27, 2025
There was a peculiar hilarity in Longstreet’s breast, the mulish foolish hungry feeling you get just before an assault.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
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.
