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witty definition

witty (wit′ē)

adjective wittier -·tier, wittiest -·ti·est

  1. having, showing, or characterized by wit; cleverly amusing
  2. Now Dial. intelligent; clever

Etymology: ME witti < OE wittig < wit, knowledge: see wit

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

witty Synonyms

witty

modif.

  1. Cleverly amusing

    humorous, droll, jocose, jocular, sarcastic, facetious, amusing, funny; see also humorous.

  2. *Intelligent

    sparkling, keen, quick-witted, brilliant, whimsical, clever, bright; see also intelligent 1.

witty implies sharp, amusing cleverness and spontaneity in perceiving and commenting on, esp. in repartee and sometimes sarcastically, the incongruities in life; humorous connotes more geniality, gentleness, or whimsicality in saying or doing something that is deliberately comical or amusing; facetious is now usually derogatory in suggesting an inappropriate or ill-chosen attempt to be witty or humorous; jocular implies a happy or playful disposition characterized by the desire to amuse others; jocose suggests a mildly mischievous quality in joking or jesting, sometimes to the point of facetiousness


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

witty Usage Examples

Preposition: as

  • hell: Pretty, fun, witty as hell, and loyal to a fault.

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • say: You had to be there... You know when you say something so witty that you wish more people were around to hear it?

Modifies a noun

  • repartee: Always capable of bringing a smile to the room with his witty repartee, his words of wisdom are not unfortunately, repeatable here.

Modifying Another Word

  • deliciously: Jose Martin was an excellent and sleazy Lescaut, very well matched with Rojo, and Laura Morera's deliciously witty Mistress.

Infinitive complement

  • say: Cheers, Olly __________________ I can't think of anything witty to say just now.. ...

Used with adjective complement

  • write: I just can't write witty, clever, meaningful lyrics, but writing the music is no problem.
witty usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

witty quotes

Conquered people tend to be witty.

-Bellow, Saul

Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind; Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave. I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned.

-Millay, Edna St Vincent

A little shorter than the Washington monument, erect, elegant, dogmatic, and ironically witty.

-Reston,James B(arrett)

witty quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"witty." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
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APA Style

witty. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/witty

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