risible

Advancedzipf 1.94

Pronunciation

/ˈrɪzɪbəl/(RIZ-ih-bul)

Part of speech

adjectiveformal

Chinese

可笑的;令人发笑的

Definition

Relating to laughter; causing laughter, especially by being absurd or ridiculous.

Word family

  • risibility/ˌrɪzɪˈbɪlɪti/(n)可笑

Collocations

  • risible claim
  • risible attempt
  • utterly risible
  • risible suggestion

Examples

  1. 1.The defendant's risible excuse that he "accidentally" stole the car fooled no one. (laughably absurd)
  2. 2.The film's special effects were risible — the "monster" was clearly a man in a rubber suit. (laughably bad)

Synonyms

  • laughable/ˈlɑːfəbəl/deserving mockery
  • absurd/əbˈsɜːd/wildly unreasonable
  • ludicrous/ˈluːdɪkrəs/so foolish it's funny

Etymology

from Latin "risibilis" — "ridere" = to laugh — capable of causing laughter