sarcasm

English

Etymology

From Late Latin sarcasmus, from Ancient Greek σαρκασμός (sarkasmós, “a sneer”), from σαρκάζω (sarkázō, “I gnash the teeth (in anger)”, literally “I strip off the flesh”), from σάρξ (sárx, “flesh”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsɑːɹˌkæzəm/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈsɑːˌkæzəm/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

sarcasm (countable and uncountable, plural sarcasms)

1. (uncountable) Use of acerbic language to mock or convey contempt, often using irony and (in speech) often marked by overemphasis and a sneering tone of voice.
   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

     Although the Celebrity was almost impervious to sarcasm, he was now beginning to exhibit visible signs of uneasiness, the consciousness dawning upon him that his eccentricity was not receiving the ovation it merited.

2. (countable) An act of sarcasm.

Usage notes

Because sarcasm and irony often go together, people often use sarcasm to refer to irony. Strictly speaking, an ironic statement is one that means the opposite of its content, and a sarcastic statement is an acerbic or sardonic one. To distinguish the two, joyfully saying "Oh my gosh, I hate you!" to sincerely congratulate one's best friend on their good fortune is ironic, but not sarcastic; saying, "I'm not a mind reader, okay?" is sarcastic, but not ironic.

Synonyms

• (uncountable): derision, facetiousness, irony, ridicule, satire
• (countable): taunt, gibe

Derived terms

• sarcasm detector
• sarcasm-impaired
• sarcastic

 

Translations

derision, facetiousness

• Arabic: النقد الساخر, سُخْرِيَّة f (suḵriyya), تَهَكُّم m (tahakkum)
• Armenian: սարկազմ (hy) (sarkazm)
• Azerbaijani: istehza (az)
• Belarusian: сарка́зм m (sarkázm)
• Bulgarian: сарказъм (bg) m (sarkazǎm)
• Catalan: sarcasme
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 諷刺／讽刺 (zh) (fěngcì)

• Czech: sarkasmus (cs) m
• Danish: sarkasme (da) c
• Dutch: sarcasme (nl) n
• Esperanto: sarkasmo
• Finnish: sarkasmi (fi)
• French: sarcasme (fr)
• Georgian: სარკაზმი (ka) (sarḳazmi)
• German: Sarkasmus (de) m
• Greek: σαρκασμός (el) m (sarkasmós)

  Ancient: σαρκασμός m (sarkasmós)

• Hindi: ताना (hi) m (tānā), व्यंग-कथ m (vyaṅg-kath), व्यंग (hi) m (vyaṅg)
• Hungarian: gúny (hu), szarkazmus (hu)
• Indonesian: sarkasme (id)
• Irish: searbhas m
• Italian: sarcasmo (it)
• Japanese: 皮肉 (ja) (ひにく, hiniku), 諷刺 (ja) (ふうし, fūshi)
• Korean: 풍자 (ko) (pungja)
• Latin: dicācitās f
• Maori: tao kī
• Muong: sự mỉa mai
• Navajo: ąąh nehelghaał
• Norwegian: sarkasme
• Persian: طعنه (fa) (ta'ne), گواژه (fa) (govâže)
• Plautdietsch: Spott m
• Polish: sarkazm (pl), kpina (pl) f, szyderstwo (pl) n, drwina (pl) f
• Portuguese: sarcasmo (pt)
• Punjabi: ਵਿਅੰਗ m (viaṅga)
• Romanian: sarcasm (ro)
• Russian: сарка́зм (ru) m (sarkázm), е́дкость (ru) f (jédkostʹ), язви́тельность (ru) f (jazvítelʹnostʹ), ёрничество n (jórničestvo)
• Spanish: sarcasmo (es)
• Swedish: sarkasm (sv) c
• Tagalog: gayambalbal, pang-uuyam
• Telugu: వ్యంగ్యము (te) (vyaṅgyamu)
• Thai: การแดกดัน (th) (gaan-dɛ̀ɛk-dan), การประชด (th) (gaan-bprà-chót), การประชดประชัน (th) (gaan-bprà-chót-bprà-chan), การพูดถากถาง (gaan-pûut-tàak-tǎang), การพูดเสียดสี (gaan-pûut-sìiat-sǐi), การพูดเหน็บแนม (gaan-pûut-nèp-nɛɛm)
• Tibetan: ཟུར་ཟ (zur za)
• Turkish: alaycılık (tr), istihza (tr)
• Ukrainian: сарка́зм m (sarkázm)
• Vietnamese: sự nói mỉa, sự mỉa mai (vi)
• Welsh: coegni (cy)

See also

• sarcasm on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Further reading

• “sarcasm”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “sarcasm”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “sarcasm”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French sarcasme, from Latin sarcasmus.

Noun

sarcasm n (plural sarcasme)

1. sarcasm

Declension

Declension of sarcasm

	singular		plural
	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	(un) sarcasm	sarcasmul	(niște) sarcasme	sarcasmele
genitive/dative	(unui) sarcasm	sarcasmului	(unor) sarcasme	sarcasmelor
vocative	sarcasmule		sarcasmelor