was wotd|2007|April|24
English
Etymology
French sardonique < L. sardonius < AGr. polytonic|ÏαÏδÏÎ½Î¹Î¿Ï (sardonios), alternate form of polytonic|ÏαÏÎ´Î¬Î½Î¹Î¿Ï (sardanios) "bitter or scornful laughter", which is often cited as deriving from the Sardinian plant (w:Ranunculus|Ranunculus sardous), known as either polytonic|ÏαÏδάνη (sardanÄ) or ÏαÏδÏνιον (sardonion). When eaten, it would cause the eater's face to contort in a look resembling scorn (generally followed by death). It might also be related to ÏαίÏÏ (sairÅ) "I grin".
Pronunciation
italbrac|RP IPA|/sÉËËdÉnɪk/
italbrac|US IPA|/sÉËËdÉËnɪk/
audio|en-us-sardonic.ogg|Audio (US)
rhymes|Énɪk
Adjective
en-adj
- Scornfully mocking or cynical.
#: He distances himself from people with his nasty, sardonic laughter.
- Disdainfully or ironically humorous.
Related terms
sardonian
Translations
trans-top|scornfully mocking
Finnish: häijy, ivallinen
French: sardonique
Portuguese: sarcástico, motejante
trans-mid
Spanish: sardónico m
trans-bottom
trans-top|ironically humorous
French: sardonique
trans-mid
Portuguese: ridÃculo, escarnificante, patético
trans-bottom
fa:sardonic
fr:sardonic
io:sardonic
pl:sardonic
ru:sardonic
te:sardonic
vi:sardonic
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