levity
Americannoun
plural
levities-
lightness of mind, character, or behavior; lack of appropriate seriousness or earnestness.
- Synonyms:
- giddiness, triviality, flippancy, frivolity
-
an instance or exhibition of this.
- Synonyms:
- giddiness, triviality, flippancy, frivolity
-
lightness in weight.
noun
-
inappropriate lack of seriousness
-
fickleness or instability
-
archaic lightness in weight
Etymology
Origin of levity
1555–65; < Latin levitās lightness, frivolity, equivalent to levi ( s ) light + -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.
“But that doesn’t mean you can’t approach the topic with levity.”
“It’s a show of joy and levity but also honors the fact that we are missing a core character who did die a hero’s death and honoring him by keeping his memory alive.”
From Los Angeles Times
The pair singing along to Prine and DeMent’s “In Spite of Ourselves,” with its wincingly funny lovers trading jabs and devotions, is one moment of levity and self-awareness breaking through the desperation.
From Los Angeles Times
“One Battle After Another” never once forgets that there is plenty of levity to be found in even the darkest, most dangerous times.
From Salon
Taught by Steel, the class helps students learn how to interact with hospital patients with levity and humor.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
