tongue-in-cheek
CulturalExample 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 then Mulaney rounded the curve with a tongue-in-cheek reference to the “Bluey” dad controversy and I sat up straighter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Now, I’m sure that was tongue-in-cheek, but what do you do with that?”
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2026
The name is tongue-in-cheek, but investors haven’t had patience for actual stodginess lately.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
Meanwhile, New York's Mayor Zohran Mamdani has signed a tongue-in-cheek executive order "temporarily repealing bedtimes" to encourage children to watch the late-night games.
From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026
She gave me an A on the written report, saying she liked my tongue-in-cheek approach to criticism, but warned me to clean up the language and watch my run-on sentences.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
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.
