ludicrous

[loo-di-kruhs]

adjective

1. causing laughter because of absurdity; provoking or deserving derision; ridiculous; laughable.

   a ludicrous lack of efficiency.

   Synonyms: farcical

ludicrous

/ ˈluːdɪkrəs /

adjective

1. absurd or incongruous to the point of provoking ridicule or laughter

Other Word Forms

• ludicrously adverb
• ludicrousness noun
• unludicrous adjective
• unludicrously adverb
• unludicrousness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of ludicrous¹

1610–20; from Latin lūdicrus “sportive,” equivalent to lūdicr(um) “a show, public games” ( lūdi-, stem of lūdere “to play” + -crum noun suffix of instrument or result) + -us -ous

Word History and Origins

Origin of ludicrous¹

C17: from Latin lūdicrus done in sport, from lūdus game; related to lūdere to play

Synonym Study

See funny ¹.

Example Sentences

It may seem ludicrous to risk a fast bowler with the injury history of a crash-test dummy when his first attempt at cricket in whites for 15 months resulted in a trip to hospital.

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Joe Bennett, Lindsay's son, described the charges against them as "ludicrous".

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“It is ludicrous to believe that asset bubbles can only be recognized in hindsight,” he wrote.

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At its core, Smith’s collection is glamorous, albeit unrealistic and ludicrous — much like Smith’s own social media content.

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The way American newspapers caricatured his portly build and bald head, portraying him like some stubby supervillain sprung from the pages of one of their ludicrous comic books.

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Related Words

• bizarre 
• comical 
• crazy 
• fantastic 
• farcical 
• foolish 
• funny 
• grotesque 
• incongruous 
• laughable 
• nonsensical 
• odd 
• outlandish 
• preposterous 
• silly