adjective
-
having a tendency to laugh
-
causing laughter; ridiculous
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of risible
1550–60; < Late Latin rīsibilis that can laugh, equivalent to Latin rīs ( us ) laughed (past participle of rīdēre to laugh) + -ibilis -ible
Explanation
Risible describes something that is laughable or amusing, like seeing dozens of clowns emerge from a very tiny car. Risible is a fun word to say (it rhymes with visible), but it's not used all that much, maybe because it's a little formal. If you started saying the word risible all the time, that itself might be a little bit risible. Fun — and less stuffy — synonyms include amusing, comic, comical, funny, laughable, and mirthful.
Vocabulary lists containing risible
Tricky Terms for April Fool's Day
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"Hapworth 16, 1924" by J.D. Salinger
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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.
Keith Prince, a Reform London Assembly Member, said: "To say that he was unaware of what he was promoting is frankly risible."
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
I hadn’t been to an Angels game in a few years, and the stadium was as risible as I remembered it, if not more so.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2024
It’s not as though other companies following the investor-mollifying A.I. trends aren’t making their own risible mistakes or faking their most impressive demos.
From Slate ● May 30, 2024
Among his more risible claims is that 29 of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence were lay ministers.
From Salon ● Nov. 4, 2023
The poor fellow uttered these sentiments with such earnestness, that my risible emotions were converted into pity.
From A Morning's Walk from London to Kew by Richard Phillips
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.
