i ‧ ron ‧ y /ˈaɪərəni $ ˈaɪrə-/ BrE AmE noun ( plural ironies )
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: ironia , from Greek eironeia , from eiron 'person who lies' ]
1 . [uncountable and countable] a situation that is unusual or amusing because something strange happens, or the opposite of what is expected happens or is true:
Life is full of little ironies.
tragic/cruel/bitter etc irony
The tragic irony is that the drug was supposed to save lives.
2 . [uncountable] when you use words that are the opposite of what you really mean, often in order to be amusing
trace/hint/touch of irony
Wagner calls his program ‘the worst talk show in America,’ without a hint of irony.
heavy irony British English (=a lot of irony)
‘Of course Michael won’t be late; you know how punctual he always is,’ she said with heavy irony.
⇨ ↑ sarcasm , ↑ dramatic irony
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THESAURUS
■ techniques used in language
▪ metaphor a way of describing something by referring to it as something different and suggesting that it has similar qualities to that thing:
The beehive is a metaphor for human society.
▪ simile an expression that describes something by comparing it with something else, using the words as or like , for example ‘as white as snow’:
The poet uses the simile ‘soft like clay’.
▪ irony the use of words that are the opposite of what you really mean, often in order to be amusing:
‘I’m so happy to hear that,’ he said, with more than a trace of irony in his voice.
▪ bathos a sudden change from a subject that is beautiful, moral, or serious to something that is ordinary, silly, or not important:
The play is too sentimental and full of bathos.
▪ hyperbole a way of describing something by saying that it is much bigger, smaller, worse etc than it actually is – used especially to excite people’s feelings:
In his speeches, he used a lot of hyperbole.
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journalistic hyperbole
▪ alliteration the use of several words together that all begin with the same sound, in order to make a special effect, especially in poetry:
the alliteration of the ‘s’ sound in ‘sweet birds sang softly’
▪ imagery the use of words to describe ideas or actions in a way that makes the reader connect the ideas with pictures in their mind:
the use of water imagery in Fitzgerald’s novel ‘The Great Gatsby’
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She uses the imagery of a bird’s song to represent eternal hope.
▪ rhetorical question a question that you ask as a way of making a statement, without expecting an answer:
When he said ‘how can these attitudes still exist in a civilized society?’, he was asking a rhetorical question.