Words / S / General

sarcasm

noun/ˈsɑːkæzəm/

B1CEFR level
20/100Rarity: fairly common
NeutralRegister

The use of irony to mock or convey contempt.

The dripping sarcasm in her thank-you note was impossible to miss.

Similar: irony, derision, mockery

Origin: From Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein to tear flesh, sneer.

Topic: sarcasm in General English

Rarity runs from 0 (a word everyone knows) to 100 (almost never seen outside specialist or literary writing). Level is the word's real difficulty on the CEFR scale, from A1 to C2.

Get words like sarcasm on your lock screen, a few a day, with review that makes them stick.

Download on the App Store Lexfall puts a new word on your home and lock screen through widgets, so you learn without opening an app. Free to download. After a free trial, a subscription unlocks every field. Built for iPhone, iOS 15.1 or later.
QR code that opens Lexfall on the App Store
On a computer?Scan with your iPhone camera.

More general words: sarcasm