pleasantry
Americannoun
-
pleasantries
plural
-
good-humored teasing; banter.
-
a humorous or jesting remark.
-
a courteous social remark used to initiate or facilitate a conversation.
to exchange pleasantries.
-
a humorous action.
noun
-
(often plural) an agreeable or amusing remark, often one made in order to be polite
they exchanged pleasantries
-
an agreeably humorous manner or style
-
rare enjoyment; pleasantness
a pleasantry of life
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pleasantry
1645–55; < French plaisanterie, Old French plesanterie. See pleasant, -ry
Explanation
“It’s so nice to see you.” “Nice weather, yes?” “You look great in that frog costume.” Each of the last three sentences is a pleasantry, a warm and kind-hearted bit of small talk. It’s no accident that the word pleasant is inside pleasantry, since a pleasantry is a simple, polite, and pleasant remark made in a conversation. Pleasantries aren’t that deep — talking about politics or religion might be outside the pleasantry range, but some good-humored chatting never hurt anyone. You might say some pleasantries to a passerby on the street, when you are introduced to someone new, or if your grandmother asks you a question about your dating life.
Vocabulary lists containing pleasantry
March: Book Two
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Running Dream
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Trifles
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
It’s unclear if this is a plea or a pleasantry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026
Norm doesn’t treat the inquiry — “How’s the world treating you, Norm?” — as perfunctory pleasantry.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2025
Suddenly things that seem kind of nice because they are little dashes of pleasantry in what may be an otherwise sterile work environment are relatively banal in the context of working from home.
From New York Times ● Apr. 14, 2022
Murray seemed embarrassed, mumbled some pleasantry, then turned away.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 6, 2019
It wasn’t a pleasantry, she really needed to know.
From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson
The Dodgers’ newest star arrived Sunday and was in the Dodgers’ dugout during the game, exchanging pleasantries with his new teammates and coaches.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
Together for the better part of four decades, L7 did not faff around with small talk and pleasantries: They took the stage and rocked your face off.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
Whatever Tuchel said, and it was unlikely to have been pleasantries, was the catalyst for an outstanding attacking display which saw Jude Bellingham restore England's lead moments after half-time.
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
Wiener said she had known Pretti for around five years and would exchange pleasantries with him over the fence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
We exchanged a few pleasantries as we climbed a narrow road between tall trees, he inquiring after how I had slept at the Taylors and so forth.
From "The Remains of the Day" by Kazuo Ishiguro
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.
