absurd
ab·surd
adjective
1.
inconsistent with reason or logic or common sense
- “the absurd predicament of seeming to argue that virtue is highly desirable but intensely unpleasant” Walter Lippman
2.
completely devoid of wisdom or good sense
- “the absurd excuse that the dog ate his homework”
- “that”
- “;”
- “;”
- “;”
Origin
First attested in 1557. From Middle French absurde, from Latin absurdus (“incongruous, dissonant, out of tune”), from ab (“away from, out”) + surdus (“silent, deaf, dull-sounding”). Compare surd.
Phrases
- reduction to the absurd
- Theatre of the Absurd
Related words
Word family
WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.