Humour, irony and register Humor an Ironie
Say what you mean, or say it with a wink. Words for jokes, irony and wordplay, for formal and informal speech, and for softening or sharpening a statement.
By the end of this lesson you can
- Tell a joke from a serious remark, and say which one you mean.
- Describe a tone as ironic, sarcastic, polite, tactful or pompous.
- Tell formal speech from informal speech.
- Soften, downplay or exaggerate a statement.
25 words and phrases
- den Humor
- humour
- witzeg
- funny, amusing
- de Witz
- joke Plural: d'Witzer.
- ironesch
- ironic, ironically
- sarkastesch
- sarcastic, sarcastically
- den Zynismus
- cynicism
- d'Wuertspill
- wordplay, pun Plural: d'Wuertspiller.
- zweedeiteg
- ambiguous
- gecksen
- to joke, to banter
- schmunzelen
- to grin, to smile cheerfully
- iwwerdreiwen
- to exaggerate Perfect: huet iwwerdriwwen.
- ofschwächen
- to tone down, to moderate
- verharmlosen
- to downplay
- héiflech
- polite, politely
- taktvoll
- tactful, tactfully
- diplomatesch
- diplomatic, tactful
- formell
- formal, official
- informell
- informal
- geschwollen
- pompous
- vulgär
- vulgar, coarse
- de Jargon
- jargon
- d'Ausdrocksweis
- style, way of expressing oneself
- d'Äntwert
- answer, reply
- d'Formuléierung
- wording
- d'Grimmel
- a tad, a bit
Grammar
Tone words are also adverbs
Words for tone such as héiflech, sarkastesch, ironesch, geschwollen and vulgär are adjectives, and the same form is used as an adverb, with nothing added: héiflech nogelauschtert (listened politely).
- Ech krut eng héiflech Äntwert. — I got a polite answer.
- Si hunn eis héiflech nogelauschtert, wéi mir eis Geschicht erzielt hunn. — They listened to us politely when we told our story.
- Muss de dech ëmmer esou sarkastesch ausdrécken? — Do you always have to express yourself so sarcastically?
Joking, and meaning it
To say that something was only a joke, use am Witz. To say that you are serious, use ouni Witz. The dictionary explains the first as "not meant seriously" and the second as "it is just as I say it".
For a situation that is no laughing matter, say that it is not for joking: Et ass net fir ze gecksen.
- Ech hunn dat am Witz gesot! — I said that as a joke!
- Ouni Witz! — No joke!
- Et ass net fir ze gecksen. — This is no joking matter.
- Huel net alles, wat ech soen, esou wuertwiertlech! — Do not take everything I say so literally!
Softening, downplaying, exaggerating
Three verbs set the strength of a statement: ofschwächen makes it weaker, verharmlosen makes a thing sound harmless, and iwwerdreiwen makes it stronger than the facts. The perfect of iwwerdreiwen is huet iwwerdriwwen.
Use diplomatesch and taktvoll for the way a thing is said, and formell or informell for the occasion.
- Du muss deng Formuléierung eng Grimmel ofschwächen. — You must tone down your wording a little.
- Muss du beim Erzielen ëmmer esou iwwerdreiwen? — Do you always have to exaggerate when you tell a story?
- Et ass him schlecht, well e gëschter mam Iessen iwwerdriwwen huet. — He feels ill because he overdid the food yesterday.
Practice
14 exercises: multiple choice, typing, matching pairs and word order.