humorous

[hyoo-mer-uhs or, often, yoo-]

See more synonyms for humorous on Thesaurus.com

adjective

characterized by humor; funny; comical: a humorous anecdote.
having or showing the faculty of humor; droll; facetious: a humorous person.

Origin of humorous

First recorded in 1570–80; humor + -ous

Related formshu·mor·ous·ly, adverbhu·mor·ous·ness, noun

Synonyms for humorous

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1. ludicrous, laughable. 2. jocose, jocular, comic, comical. Humorous, witty, facetious, waggish imply something that arises from cleverness or a sense of fun. Humorous implies a genuine sense of fun and the comic, impersonal, or gently personal: a humorous version of an incident; a humorous view of life. Witty implies quickness to perceive the amusing, striking, or unusual and to express it cleverly and entertainingly; it sometimes becomes rather sharp and unkind, particularly in quick repartee of a personal nature: a witty and interesting companion; to be witty at someone else's expense. Facetious suggests a desire or attempt to be jocular or witty but not to be taken seriously: a facetious remark. Waggish suggests the spirit of sly mischief and roguery of the constant joker, with no harm intended: a waggish good humor.

Antonyms for humorous

1, 2. solemn, sober, serious.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for humorously

jokingly, amusingly, merrily, ridiculously, absurdly, facetiously, ironically, jocosely, jovially, ludicrously, playfully, satirically

Examples from the Web for humorously

Contemporary Examples of humorously

Writing about the experience, humorously, left him a favorite amongst both prisoners and their guards, an odd situation.
From Moscow to Queens, Down Sergei Dovlatov Way
Daniel Genis
September 15, 2014
And here she is humorously reaffirming them as only she could in a farewell parliamentary debate.
Margaret Thatcher Was Right About the Euro
David Frum
April 8, 2013
At the end of the show, the two humorously announced that they were going to host their own talk show together.
‘Ebony’ Cover With NeNe Leakes Unleashes a Firestorm of Criticism
Karu F. Daniels
November 27, 2012
Used as a humorously exaggerated formula of politeness when refusing food.
Wunnerfitz! Sollybuster! The Fun of the Dictionary of American Regional English
Ammon Shea
April 12, 2012

Historical Examples of humorously

"It is a good thing to have a rich son," said Captain Rushton, humorously.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
Once she had humorously lamented that she had never been to Simpson's restaurant in the Strand.
Howards End
E. M. Forster
She had bright, humorously satirical eyes; and her mouth was large.
The Prisoner
Alice Brown
In repose, his congested face had a humorously melancholy expression.
Chance
Joseph Conrad
"Perhaps she will elope," the doctor said to his wife, humorously.
The Man Who Wins
Robert Herrick

British Dictionary definitions for humorously

humorous

adjective

funny; comical; amusing
displaying or creating humour
archaic another word for capricious

Derived Formshumorously, adverbhumorousness, 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 humorously

humorous

adj.

early 15c., "relating to the body humors," a native formation from humor, or else from Middle French humoreux "damp," from Old French humor (see humor (n.)). The meaning "funny" dates from 1705 in English. Related: Humorously; humorousness.