SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
sarcasm
noun
Cutting or mocking language, often expressing the opposite of the intended meaning.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Cutting verbal mockery
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topSarcasm intends a cutting or mocking effect. Irony need not be hurtful, and satire is a broader form of criticism that can employ sarcasm.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See sarcasm in use
Her exaggerated praise of the obviously broken clock was unmistakable sarcasm.
The next draft used hyperbole when Nia wrote that the final drumbeat could have shaken every window in the city. Her line about the hour-long queue carried sarcasm: she called the unexplained wait a glorious achievement in hospitality.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license