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.
The somewhat tongue-in-cheek concept, where children are given intense football coaching from an early age, exploded on social media following Mbappe's rapid rise.
From BBC • Jun. 16, 2026
The Scottish Daily Express called theirs “the Murrell Collection,” a tongue-in-cheek homage to the famous Burrell Collection of artworks in Glasgow.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
In Seattle, telecommunications company Lumen did its best to turn the situation on its head, filming a tongue-in-cheek video from the stadium it sponsors, normally the home of the NFL's Seahawks and MLS' Sounders.
From Barron's • Jun. 12, 2026
In the end, all that’s left is another thinly written woman in horror, camouflaged by tongue-in-cheek jokes and flimsy progressive ideas.
From Salon • Jun. 4, 2026
She put up with the officers asking tongue-in-cheek questions about her procedures.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
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.
