Skip to main content
sense of humor

sense of humor

421 3.1
To see and enjoy what is funny and sometimes make others laugh
  • noun
  • /sɛns əv ˈhjuːmər/
  • US
translation icon : sentido del humor
  • A good sense of humor can help you get through tough times.
  • a good sense of humor
  • keep a sense of humor
  • lack a sense of humor

He seems to have a sense of humor, right?

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • And then she said, your sense of humor is dazzling.

  • Hey, I think you got a swell sense of humor.

  • And I would say that our sense of humor is slightly the same.

  • Because they have a sense of humor and they can handle working with us.

  • And it works so well because his sense of humour is exactly like mine, right?

  • Your parents must have had a sense of humor.

  • Among my skills and characteristics is my ability to provide a sense of humor in our work.

    Academic text (2015)
  • And most importantly, keep your sense of humor and learn from the experience!

    Academic text (2002)
  • Others wrote that patience, tolerance, understanding, love, and a sense of humor are essential.

    Academic text (1994)
  • I see you still haven't lost your sense of humor.

Synonyms

humor
vssense of humor
  • US
664 1.0

The ability to make people laugh

is about both appreciating and expressing what people find funny
sharp wit
vssense of humor
2 4.1

To make quick, clever, funny comments that amuse people

is a general ability to enjoy or show what is funny without quick cleverness
jocularity
vssense of humor
1 8.0

A playful, joking way of behaving that makes people laugh

is a wider ability to notice or show what is funny beyond mere joking
funniness
vssense of humor
1 2.7

A thing that makes people laugh

is the ability to appreciate or express what is funny, not incidents themselves
wittiness
vssense of humor
1 5.0

The ability to make quick clever remarks that make people laugh

is the general ability to appreciate or produce what others find amusing
comicality
vssense of humor
1 7.4

A quality that makes people laugh

is about a person's ability to notice or show what is funny rather than objects
trenchant wit
vssense of humor
  • Formal
8.1

A quick, sharp kind of humor that criticizes ideas or people

is the general ability to appreciate or show what is funny without sharp criticism
risibility
vssense of humor
  • Formal
9.9

A tendency to laugh easily

is a broader capacity to appreciate or also to express what is funny
jocosity
vssense of humor
  • Formal
9.9

To joke and be playful in a friendly way that makes people smile

is the ability to appreciate or express what is funny in general situations
humorousness
vssense of humor
4.6

Being funny in a way that makes people laugh

is the personal capacity to appreciate or express what people find amusing

Antonyms

53 2.7

A calm and honest way of speaking or acting that shows you mean what you say

1 6.9

Not able to enjoy jokes or find things funny

How Funny

sense of humor
  • US
421 3.1
humorlessness
  • US
1 6.9

Surface Forms

Morphology

sense + of + humor

The meaning 'the ability to appreciate or express what is funny' is directly and compositionally derived from 'sense' (a natural ability) + 'humor' (comic quality); the preposition 'of' simply links the two nouns. This straightforward, cross-linguistically common construction (e.g., Spanish 'sentido del humor', French 'sens de l'humour') would be clear to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.

Etymology

Sense of humor comes from an old idea where humor meant a body fluid people thought changed a person's mood. So having a good sense of humor meant being in a cheerful mood, and today it means the ability to enjoy or show what is 'funny'.