jocund
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
See jovial.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of jocund
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English jocound, from Late Latin jocundus, alteration of Latin jūcundus “pleasant,” equivalent to ju(vāre) “to help, benefit, please, delight” + -cundus adjective suffix
Explanation
You know that teacher who always has a goofy smile on his face and a bad pun for the kids? He's got a jocund personality, meaning he's merry and cheerful. The word jocund came from the influence of two Latin words, jocundus, which means pleasant, and jocus, which is just what it sounds like: a joke. Usually the word is used to describe people, but not always. Say your family gets together every year for a big, merry barbecue — you could describe it as a jocund gathering, or a jocund weekend. It's a sort of old-fashioned word, though, so use it sparingly.
Vocabulary lists containing jocund
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
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Romeo and Juliet
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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.
The design eschews signaling traditional utility in favor of a jocund modernism—call it orbital chic.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026
The book would have paired Hughes’s fervent poem about the pain of subjugation with Brown’s jocund illustrations of a lion:
From New York Times • May 25, 2023
The rest of the poem is about what “a jocund company” they make.
From Washington Post • Jun. 11, 2020
That last part is a bit of cheek for effect, deleted quickly by a green cursor, a taste of the jocund energy that informs this six-part limited series.
From Salon • Jan. 12, 2019
The January of this second winter had been prolific in heavy snow-storms, and the sleighing had filled town with its jocund tinkles.
From An Ambitious Woman A Novel by Fawcett, Edgar
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.
