Adjacent Words

Ludicrous definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

LU'DICROUS, a. [L. ludicer, from ludo, to sport.]
Sportive; burlesque; adapted to raise laughter, without scorn or contempt. Ludicrous differs from ridiculous; the latter implying contempt or derision.
Plutarch quotes this instance of Homer's judgment, in closing a ludicrous scene with decency and instruction.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: broadly or extravagantly humorous; resembling farce; "the wild farcical exuberance of a clown"; "ludicrous green hair" [syn: farcical, ludicrous, ridiculous]
2: incongruous;inviting ridicule; "the absurd excuse that the dog ate his homework"; "that's a cockeyed idea"; "ask a nonsensical question and get a nonsensical answer"; "a contribution so small as to be laughable"; "it is ludicrous to call a cottage a mansion"; "a preposterous attempt to turn back the pages of history"; "her conceited assumption of universal interest in her rather dull children was ridiculous" [syn: absurd, cockeyed, derisory, idiotic, laughable, ludicrous, nonsensical, preposterous, ridiculous]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Latin ludicrus, from ludus play, sport; perhaps akin to Greek loidoros abusive Date: 1712 1. amusing or laughable through obvious absurdity, incongruity, exaggeration, or eccentricity 2. meriting derisive laughter or scorn as absurdly inept, false, or foolish Synonyms: see laughable • ludicrously adverb • ludicrousness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. absurd or ridiculous; laughable. Derivatives: ludicrously adv. ludicrousness n. Etymology: L ludicrus prob. f. ludicrum stage play

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Ludicrous Lu"di*crous, a. [L. ludicrus, or ludicer, from ludus play, sport, fr. ludere to play.] Adapted to excite laughter, without scorn or contempt; sportive. --Broome. A chapter upon German rhetoric would be in the same ludicrous predicament as Van Troil's chapter on the snakes of Iceland, which delivers its business in one summary sentence, announcing, that snakes in Iceland -- there are none. --De Quincey. Syn: Laughable; sportive; burlesque; comic; droll; ridiculous. Usage: Ludicrous, Laughable, Ridiculous. We speak of a thing as ludicrous when it tends to produce laughter; as laughable when the impression is somewhat stronger; as ridiculous when more or less contempt is mingled with the merriment created. -- Lu"di*crous*ly, adv. -- Lu"di*crous*ness, n.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

If you describe something as ludicrous, you are emphasizing that you think it is foolish, unreasonable, or unsuitable. It was ludicrous to suggest that the visit could be kept secret... It's a completely ludicrous idea. = ridiculous ADJ: oft it v-link ADJ to-inf [emphasis] • ludicrously By Western standards the prices are ludicrously low. ADV

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Laughable, comical, comic, odd, ridiculous, droll, funny, farcical, absurd, sportive, burlesque.

Moby Thesaurus

absurd, amusing, antic, beyond belief, bizarre, cockamamie, comic, comical, crazy, droll, eccentric, extravagant, fantastic, farcical, foolish, funny, grotesque, high-flown, hilarious, humorous, incongruous, incredible, laughable, monstrous, nonsensical, outrageous, outre, poppycockish, preposterous, priceless, quaint, quizzical, rich, ridiculous, risible, screaming, silly, weird, whimsical, wild, witty