joke

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a ludicrous or grotesque act done for fun and amusement

   Hiding my clothes when I came out of the shower was a mean joke.

2. 2
   noun

   a triviality not to be taken seriously

   I regarded their campaign for mayor as a joke.

3. 3
   noun

   a humorous anecdote or remark intended to provoke laughter

   I told a very funny joke.

4. 4
   verb

   to act in a funny or teasing way

   I like to joke with my colleagues at the water cooler.

5. 5
   verb

   to tell a joke

   I joke for a living, because I am a comedian.

6. 6
   noun

   An amusing story.

   Or witty joke our airy senses moves / To pleasant laughter.

7. 7
   noun

   Something said or done for amusement, not in seriousness.

   It was a joke!

8. 8
   noun

   A laughably worthless thing or person; a sham.

   Your effort at cleaning your room is a joke.

Etymology

From Latin iocus (“joke, jest, pastime”), from Proto-Italic *jokos (“word, (playful?) saying”), from Proto-Indo-European *yokos (“word, utterance”), from ultimate root Proto-Indo-European *yek- (“to speak, utter”) (of which distant cognates include Proto-Celtic *yextis (“language”) (Breton yezh (“language”) and Welsh iaith (“language”)) and German Beichte (“confession”)). Cognate with French jeu, Italian gioco, Portuguese jogo, Spanish juego, Romanian joc, English Yule, Danish Jule, Norwegian Bokmål Jul, Swedish Jul, and Norwegian Nynorsk jol.