Definition of 'witty'
Word forms: comparative wittier
, superlative wittiest
adjective
Someone or something that is witty is amusing in a clever way.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
witty in British English
adjectiveWord forms: -tier, -tiest
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
wittily (ˈwittily) adverb
wittiness (ˈwittiness)
noun
Word Frequency
witty in American English
adjectiveWord forms: ˈwittier or ˈwittiest
SYNONYMY NOTE: witty implies sharp, amusing cleverness and spontaneity in perceiving and commenting on,
esp. in repartee and sometimes sarcastically, the incongruities in life; humorous connotes more geniality, gentleness, or whimsicality in saying or doing something
that is deliberately comical or amusing; facetious is now usually derogatory in suggesting an attempt to be witty or humorous that is
unsuccessful because it is inappropriate or in bad taste; jocular implies a happy or playful disposition characterized by the desire to amuse others; jocose suggests a mildly mischievous quality in joking or jesting, sometimes to the point
of facetiousness1.
having, showing, or characterized by wit; cleverly amusing
2. Dialectal
intelligent; clever
OPPOSITES: serious, solemn, sober
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
wittily (ˈwittily)
adverb
wittiness (ˈwittiness)
noun
Word Frequency
witty in American English
(ˈwɪti)
adjectiveWord forms: -tier, -tiest
SYNONYMS 1, 2. droll, funny, original, sparkling, brilliant. See humorous1.ANTONYMS 1, 2. dull, stupid.1.
a witty writer
2.
characterized by wit
a witty remark
3. Brit dialect
intelligent; clever
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
wittily adverb
wittiness
noun
Examples of 'witty' in a sentence
witty
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In other languages
witty
British English: witty
/ˈwɪtɪ/ ADJECTIVE
Someone or something that is witty is amusing in a clever way.
His plays were very good, very witty.
- American English: witty /ˈwɪti/
- Arabic: فَطِن
- Brazilian Portuguese: engenhoso
- Chinese: 诙谐的
- Croatian: domišljat
- Czech: duchaplný
- Danish: vittig
- Dutch: gevat
- European Spanish: ocurrente
- Finnish: nokkela
- French: fin
- German: geistreich
- Greek: πνευματώδης
- Italian: arguto
- Japanese: 機知に富んだ
- Korean: 재치 있는
- Norwegian: vittig
- Polish: dowcipny
- European Portuguese: engenhoso
- Romanian: spiritual
- Russian: остроумный
- Latin American Spanish: ocurrente
- Swedish: kvick
- Thai: มีไหวพริบ
- Turkish: esprili
- Ukrainian: дотепний
- Vietnamese: hóm hỉnh
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