English Explanatory Dictionary

absurd

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Contrary to reason or propriety; obviously and flatly opposed to manifest truth; inconsistent with the plain dictates of common sense; logically contradictory; nonsensical; ridiculous; silly.
  2. Inharmonious; dissonant.
  3. Having no rational or orderly relationship to people's lives; meaningless; lacking order or value.
  4. Dealing with absurdism.
noun
  1. An absurdity.
  2. The opposition between the human search for meaning in life and the inability to find any; the state or condition in which man exists in an irrational universe and his life has no meaning outside of his existence.

Pronunciation

/əbˈsɜːd/ /əbˈzɜːd/ /æbˈsɚd/ /æbˈzɚd/ /əbˈsɚd/ /əbˈzɚd/ en-us-absurd.ogg

Word forms

absurd absurder more absurd absurdest most absurd absurds

Etymology

First attested in 1557. From Middle French absurde, from Latin absurdus (“incongruous, dissonant, out of tune”), from ab (“away from, out”) + surdus (“silent, deaf, dull-sounding”). Compare surd.

Synonyms

absurd Laputan cockamamie cockeyed farcical foolish full of it irrational inconsistent incongruous jabberwocky laughable ludicrous nonsensical preposterous priceless rich ridiculous skimble-skamble unreasonable

Related words

nonsense fake insane

Derived words

absurdification absurdify Absurdistan absurdity absurdly absurdness nonabsurd reduction to the absurd unabsurd Theatre of the Absurd
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