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irony

EYE-ruh-nee /ˈaɪ.rə.ni/

nounB2SATGRETOEFLIELTS

literarygeneral

A contrast between expectation and reality, such as when actual words mean the opposite of literal sense (verbal irony) or events turn out contrary to expectation (situational irony).

Irony requires a sharp incongruity between expectation and reality, not merely a strange coincidence.

The story behind the word. From Greek 'eironeia', from 'eiron' ('a dissembler'). In ancient Greek comedy, the 'Eiron' was a clever underdog character who feigned ignorance to outwit the boastful 'Alazon'.

Word relationships

sarcasm: A sharp, personal form of verbal irony intended to mock or insult.
incongruity: The general state of being out of harmony or inconsistent.

literalness: Direct alignment between word/expectation and ultimate reality.

Commonly confused with

coincidence: A coincidence is two unlikely events happening together; irony is an outcome directly reversing what was expected or intended.

Word family

ironic (adjective): Happening in a way opposite to what was expected.
ironically (adverb): In an ironic manner.

Collocations

dramatic irony
situational irony
verbal irony
bitter irony
tragic irony

Idioms & expressions

irony of fate

Example sentences

"There is poignant irony in the fact that the fire station burned down while the firefighters were away on parade." Dramatic Criticism

Memory hook

IRON-y — tough like iron when reality hits opposite of expectations. When reality twists expectations completely upside down.

When not to use

Do not confuse irony with bad luck or coincidence; rain on your wedding day is unfortunate, but it is only ironic if you bought weather insurance that triggered a rainmaker machine.

Fun facts

Dramatic irony occurs when the audience knows a key piece of information that the characters on stage are completely oblivious to.