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.
Using a casual tone, you could have said something like, “For what? I know you’ll pay me back — I just wanted the credit-card points!” to add a bit of levity.
From MarketWatch
"I think we all needed a little bit of levity and lightness" and "to remember that we're all community and we can look out for each other," one participant tells AFP.
From Barron's
“Our last record, there’s a certain levity — a certain number of songs that are even meant to be a little silly.”
From Los Angeles Times
However, a touch of sardonic levity has always been part of Panahi’s storytelling.
From Los Angeles Times
They’ve captured key figures in the worlds of music, film and television in somber moments, moments of levity and everything in between.
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.
