not being funny

1 9.6

Saying this shows you are serious and not joking

idiom

: no es broma

No, I'm not being funny, but oftentimes don't start getting funny.

Examples

Like, I'm not being funny, but they've not told us about any life jackets.
I know this sounds harsh, but I'm not being funny when I say that we have a serious problem.
But I'm not being funny on the physical side.
Hopefully, guys, I'm not being funny, but this ain't far off.
Listen, I'm not being funny, but you really need to take this seriously.
Not being funny, but if we don't leave now, we'll miss the train.

Antonyms

joking

2 1.2

Meant to be funny, not serious

How Serious

grave

Formal

181 4.2

serious

∞ 2.0

not being funny

1 9.6

just joking

Informal

13 3.7

Surface Forms

not being funny main

Morphology

not + being + funny

The phrase literally composes as 'not' + 'being' + 'funny' meaning 'not amusing' or 'not joking', so a B1 learner who knows the words can plausibly infer the core sense 'I'm not joking / I'm serious'. However, its pragmatic use as a discourse marker in British English (hedging, softening, or introducing a blunt opinion) is somewhat idiomatic and context-dependent, so the exact conversational function may not be fully predictable without exposure.

Etymology

Not being funny is a short way to tell people you are 'not joking' before you say something honest. It literally puts not before funny as a quick warning, so listeners know you mean it and that what follows is 'serious'.