drollness

1 7.3

Being amusing in a slightly odd and unexpected way

noun
/ˈdroʊlnəs/

: graciosidad

My hostess, with typical Cuban drollness, indicated a pile of what I had thought was reading material and said, "Look, we have plenty."

Examples

The comedian's drollness kept the audience laughing throughout the entire show.
Her drollness made even the most mundane stories entertaining and engaging.
He had a unique drollness that made his anecdotes delightfully amusing and unexpected.

Synonyms

humor

vsdrollness

690 1.0

The ability to make people laugh

specifically points to odd, whimsical forms of that ability

dry humor

vsdrollness

5 5.3

Jokes said in a serious, calm voice so they sound like real statements

relies on odd surprise and whimsical feeling rather than deadpan tone

wackiness

vsdrollness

Informal

2 5.3

A funny, strange way of acting that surprises and makes people laugh

is quirkier and more understated rather than loudly odd

quirky humor

vsdrollness

1 4.9

Funny jokes or actions that are unusual and a little strange

is similar but highlights oddness and surprise rather than just unconventional style

drollery

vsdrollness

Archaic

1 8.6

A short funny remark or action that makes people smile

focuses on the general odd and unexpected quality rather than single items

jocularity

vsdrollness

1 8.0

A playful, joking way of behaving that makes people laugh

leans more toward solitary odd wit and unexpected amusement

ludicrousness

vsdrollness

1 7.5

A situation so silly or unreasonable that people laugh and do not believe it

is less extreme and more charmingly odd than sheer absurdity

laughability

vsdrollness

1 6.3

How much people laugh at something

is subtler, causing amused surprise rather than loud laughter

funniness

vsdrollness

1 2.7

A thing that makes people laugh

is more peculiar and unexpectedly funny than ordinary amusement

wittiness

vsdrollness

1 5.0

The ability to make quick clever remarks that make people laugh

prefers odd and whimsical amusement over sharp verbal cleverness

wryness

vsdrollness

1 7.2

A quiet, slightly mocking kind of humor

is more whimsical and unexpectedly odd rather than mocking or ironic

zaniness

vsdrollness

1 7.1

Funny, silly, unpredictable behaviour or ideas that make people laugh

keeps odd amusement but is less purely silly and more subtle

facetiousness

vsdrollness

1 7.8

A habit of making playful jokes about serious things

is more about odd whimsy than deliberate inappropriateness

comicality

vsdrollness

1 7.4

A quality that makes people laugh

adds a specific odd and whimsical twist to that general amusement

hilariousness

vsdrollness

Informal

1 2.9

The quality of being very funny and making people laugh a lot

is milder and odd rather than overwhelmingly funny

humorousness

vsdrollness

1 4.6

Being funny in a way that makes people laugh

narrows this to odd, unexpected, and whimsical kinds of funniness

screwiness

vsdrollness

Informal

1 8.0

A strange way of behaving that is often funny or surprising

is more about planned odd humor than mere oddness

whimsicality

vsdrollness

1 7.9

A playful, imaginative way of acting or creating that seems unusual and unpredictable

leans more toward odd surprise and unexpected comic effect

jocosity

vsdrollness

Formal

1 9.9

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

is more about odd surprise and whimsical tone than plain playfulness

waggishness

vsdrollness

Literature

1 8.1

A playful, slightly naughty way of being funny that makes people smile

is quirkier and less about mischief, more about odd surprise

Antonyms

seriousness

53 2.7

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

How Amusing

hilarity

12 5.2

humorousness

1 4.6

drollness

1 7.3

amusement

57 1.2

Surface Forms

drollness singular

drollnesses plural

Morphology

drollness = droll (transparent) = droll + ness

Standard noun formation from the adjective 'droll' using the productive suffix '-ness' to indicate the quality or state; meaning is directly predictable.

Etymology

Drollness comes from droll, an old French word for a person or a joke that was 'funny' or 'odd'. So drollness is the quality of being amusing in a gentle, strange, or unexpected way.