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Showing results for witticism. Search instead for witticisms.
Synonyms

witticism

American  
[wit-uh-siz-uhm] / ˈwɪt əˌsɪz əm /

noun

  1. a witty remark or sentence.

    Synonyms:
    wisecrack, sally, quip, jest, joke
witticism British  
/ ˈwɪtɪˌsɪzəm /

noun

  1. a clever or witty remark

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of witticism

1645–55; derivative of witty, modeled on criticism

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.

Not to be outdone by the album’s soaring musical ambience, Styles’ lyrics never disappoint, blending his penchant for witticism with pop-culture philosophy.

From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026

The samples offered are purple and banal, hardly living up to Gabriel García Márquez’s witticism about similar fabrications.

From New York Times • Feb. 6, 2024

“It’s a witticism, which is fine as a witticism,” Muñoz Machado told Spanish news agency EFE.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 26, 2023

This old bit of showbiz witticism from W.C.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 23, 2023

Here it became apparent that Mr. Pilkington was about to spring some carefully prepared witticism on the company, but for a moment he was too overcome by amusement to be able to utter it.

From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell

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.