ironical

American  

[ahy-ron-i-kuhl] / aɪˈrɒn ɪ kəl /

adjective

1. pertaining to, of the nature of, exhibiting, or characterized by irony or mockery: an ironical smile.

   an ironical compliment;

   an ironical smile.

   Synonyms:

   sardonic, sarcastic

2. using or prone to irony.

   an ironical speaker.

   Synonyms:

   sardonic, sarcastic

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Other Word Forms

• ironically adverb
• ironicalness noun
• nonironical adjective
• nonironicalness noun
• semi-ironical adjective
• unironical adjective

Etymology

Origin of ironical

First recorded in 1570–80; ironic + -al ¹

Explanation

Something that's ironical is wryly funny, especially because it doesn't match up with your expectations. It would be ironical to name your enormous Great Dane "Tiny." You can describe this kind of humor, situation, or literary device as either ironical or ironic — in the US it's more common to use the latter. A famously ironical passage from "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" goes like this: "Water, water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.” In other words, it's ironical that despite being surrounded by water, the mariner is thirsty. The word comes from the Greek eironikos, "putting on a feigned ignorance."

Example Sentences

Knight has taken the novel’s Gothic elements and smeared them over whatever was light or comical or ironical in the original.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2023

His sober manner is especially effective in conveying Baker’s ironical description of British condescension to the colonized and deadpan accounts of the romantic entanglements of these unconventional, impossible characters.

From Washington Post • Oct. 1, 2018

“A talent for self-realisation” hints at the language of the “how-to” guide, and yet it’s not overtly ironical.

From The Guardian • Jul. 31, 2017

Doughty has a low, mellifluous voice and an ironical manner.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 30, 2015

He fixed me with a solemn and ironical gaze.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson