Meaning & use
funniness
Last updated
UK/ˈfʌninəs/
US/ˈfʌninəs/
Meaning
noununcountable
The quality of being amusing or making people laugh.
Grammar: Not used with an or plural: the funniness of the joke.
Patterns
- the funniness of something
- the funniness of someone
The critics praised the funniness of the script.
Nobody could deny the funniness of the little boy's dance.
We rated each video on a scale of funniness.
Common combinations
- the funniness of the joke
- The funniness of the joke depends on knowing the story.
- rate funniness
- Viewers were asked to rate the funniness of each clip.
- sheer funniness
- We cried laughing at the sheer funniness of the situation.
- the funniness of the situation
- She only saw the funniness of the situation later.
- lack funniness
- The sequel lacks the funniness of the original.
Synonyms and how they differ
- humor
- Humor is the common general word and covers the whole area of what amuses us, while funniness measures how funny one thing is.
- comedy
- Comedy usually means a type of entertainment, not simply the quality of being funny.
- hilarity
- Hilarity suggests loud, shared laughter and is stronger than funniness.
- amusement
- Amusement describes the feeling of the person who is laughing, whereas funniness describes the thing that causes it.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: funniness or funniness?
funniness vs funniness
Do not confuse funniness (being funny) with funeral-related words; it is built from funny and has nothing to do with funerals.
Practice
The comedian's ____ lies in the way he describes ordinary things in a surprising way.
Choose one answer.
Funniness is the quality of being funny. Fondness means affection, and furiousness means extreme anger.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “funniness”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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