Definition of irony Irony

/ajˈɹʌni/ - [ayrunee] - i•ron•y

We found 17 definitions of irony from 6 different sources.

What does irony mean?

Noun Plural: irony
irony - a trope that involves incongruity between what is expected and what occurs
		figure of speech, trope, image, figure language used in a figurative or nonliteral sense
		antiphrasis the use of a word in a sense opposite to its normal sense (especially in irony)
irony - incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs; "the irony of Ireland's copying the nation she most hated"
		incongruity, incongruousness the quality of disagreeing; being unsuitable and inappropriate
irony - witty language used to convey insults or scorn; "he used sarcasm to upset his opponent"; "irony is wasted on the stupid"; "Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own"--Jonathan Swift
		sarcasm, satire, caustic remark
		witticism, wittiness, wit, humor, humour a message whose ingenuity or verbal skill or incongruity has the power to evoke laughter

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irony (Noun)
A statement that, when taken in context, may actually mean something different from, or the opposite of what is written literally; the use of words expressing something other than their literal intention, notably as a form of humor.
irony (Noun)
dramatic Dramatic irony : a theatrical effect in which the meaning of a situation, or some incongruity in the plot, is understood by the audience, but not by the characters in the play.
irony (Noun)
Ignorance feigned for the purpose of confounding or provoking an antagonist; Socratic irony .
irony (Adjective)
Of or pertaining to the metal iron.

irony (a.)
Made or consisting of iron; partaking of iron; iron; as, irony chains; irony particles.
irony (a.)
Resembling iron taste, hardness, or other physical property.
irony (n.)
Dissimulation; ignorance feigned for the purpose of confounding or provoking an antagonist.
irony (n.)
A sort of humor, ridicule, or light sarcasm, which adopts a mode of speech the meaning of which is contrary to the literal sense of the words.

irony
Made out of iron.
irony
A form of humor by which a statement intentionally expresses the contrary to what he intends to express.
irony
A dissimulation or ignorance feigned for the purpose of confounding or provoking an antagonist.
irony
Resembling iron taste, hardness, or other physical property.

irony
ī′run-i, n. a mode of speech which enables the speaker to convey his meaning with greater force by means of a contrast between the thought which he evidently designs to express and that which his words properly signify: satire.—adj. Iron′ical, meaning the opposite of what is expressed: satirical.—adv. Iron′ically.—The irony of fate, the perverse malignity of fate. [Fr.,—L. ironia, Gr. eirōneia, dissimulation—eirōn, a dissembler—eirein, to talk.]

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irony in sign language