Ironical Meaning
/aɪˈɹɒnɪkəl/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjCharacterized by or constituting (any kind of) irony.
adjGiven to the use of irony; sarcastic.
Sentence Examples
His ironical remarks are not directed at you.
His ironical remarks aren't directed at you.
CEFR Practice Quiz
It was ____ that the professional runner lost the race due to a broken shoelace.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She gave him an ____ smile when he suggested that he was the best chess player in the entire world.
Word Origin & History
From ironic + -al. Attested since the 1570s.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"“So, ultimately, I realized I have been completely ruining my life and my face. What is ironical is that I was only doing this to make myself look better for my wife Marwa. This was for her, not for me.”"
— 2022 August 9, Ayo Edebiri & Shana Gohd, “Private School” (22:02 from the start), in What We Do in the Shadows, season 4, episode 5, spoken by Nandor the Relentless (Kayvan Novak):
"His tone was cold and ironical; its bitterness but reflecting the terrible disappointment he had suffered."
— 1913 January–May, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Gods of Mars”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as chapter III, in The Gods of Mars, Chicago, Ill.: A[lexander] C[aldwell] McClurg & Co., September 1918, →OCLC, page 40:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
It was ____ that the professional runner lost the race due to a broken shoelace.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She gave him an ____ smile when he suggested that he was the best chess player in the entire world.